'Soldiers shot my children' - father

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 26 August 1998, 07:03 GMT]
"Both of my children, Kokularajani (09) and Anurajani (10), went for special church service on the evening of August 21. I learnt at around 5:30 p.m. that my children had been shot while returning home, and since it was dark and a state of tension prevailed in the area, I was only able reach the spot the following morning. I identified my daughter, Kokularajani's dead-body", narrated the father, Mr. I. Somarathinam, in his testimony during an inquiry on the death of Kokularajani at Valachenai Karuvankerney.

The inquiry was conducted by the area's competent officer Mr. K. Karalasingam.

Mr. T. Kantharaj, a worker at Uyana farm in Kiran, said in his statement that he was at his friend Mr. Yokeshwaran's house in Karuvankerney when he saw the nun from the nearby church running towards the Karuvankerney school.

When he and his friend went to the spot with their bicycles, they learnt that Mr. Somarathinam's two daughters had been wounded in a shooting incident.

"Later, I accompanied the nun to the hospital, where we learned that Kokularagani had died, and we saw Anurajani describing the incident to the doctor," Said Mr. Kantharaj.

"She said that she and her sister Kokularajani were returning home when some soldiers on the street stopped them for questioning. Later they told us to go and then shot us from behind", he said.

The post-mortem was conducted by Mr. K. Sukumar, who declared the death was a result of murder.