Tamil Media Alliance files case

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 14 September 1999, 20:15 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance filed a fundamental rights case in the Supreme Court today on behalf of Chinnaiah Ganeshan, a staff reporter of the Thinakaran daily newspaper. The case was filed against the unlawful arrest and detention of the journalist by the Chilaw Police on August 16.

The plaintiff has demanded two hundred thousand rupees for the humiliation and pain of mind caused by the arrest and detention.

Four Police personnel, including a woman constable, were cited as the defendants.

Chinnaiah Ganeshan was on his way to cover a meeting by the Sri Lankan President when he had met with an accident. Injured in the leg, he was resting at home after treatment when the Chilaw Police had gone to his house and arrested him despite being shown his media accreditation card.

He was locked up in a cell overnight although he had shown proof that he was employed at Lake House, the state run news paper publishing house.

The Police had suspected that he was a Tamil Tiger operative. The Supreme Court fixed the hearing on September 24. The human rights lawyer Tiny Gordon appeared for Mr.Ganeshan.