30 March 2024 12:00 am
The Tamil United Freedom Front, the political party led by one time LTTE commander turned politician Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan alias Karuna Amman, decided to support President Ranil Wickremesinghe if he contests the presidential election.
Mr. Muralitharan who once served as the Deputy Minister of Rehabilitation in the Mahinda Rajapaksa government, supported Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the 2019 presidential election.
“The President has turned around the economy. The rupee is appreciating against the US dollar. It is a clear sign of our economy getting back on track,” he told Daily Mirror. He said the Central Committee of his party met in Batticaloa yesterday and decided to support the President. Mr. Muralitharan who was the LTTE’s Eastern commander fell out with leader Velupillay Prabhakaran in 1994. Later, he worked with the military covertly and overtly to defeat the LTTE. He was nominated to Parliament during the height of war and also held ministerial responsibilities in the Mahinda Rajapaksa government.