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• Speaker to order probe into new MP’s social media videos and Facebook posts

Though Parliament’s new court jester—and he comes from Jaffna—did not bring a bunch of murungas to the House, as did the northern character in the 60s satirical play ‘He comes from Jaffna’ when he arrived at a Colombo upper class home, he brought with him ton-loads of murukku to keep viewers busy munching while he entertained with his theatricals, both in and out of Parliament.

Like a bird that flies in early to get the choicest worm, he breezed in early from his northern clime to Parliament, before it had even begun, to squat on the seat traditionally reserved for the Leader of the Opposition, whomsoever is recognised by the Speaker’s Chair as entitled to the post.

JAFFNA’S NEW MP DR RAMANATHAN ARCHCHUNA: Becomes instant social media hit on debut entry to Parliament that lifts him to national prominence

When politely requested by parliamentary staff to kindly take another seat, he wittingly or unwittingly feigned a tyro’s ignorance but, instead of seeking guidance, held his ground to sit anywhere he wished, even in the traditional seat reserved for the President whenever he comes, at his sole discretion, to address the House; and, challenging the staff to show where it was otherwise stated, stubbornly refused to budge.

Even after Parliament named Sajith Premadasa as the Leader of the Opposition, the man who had come from Jaffna with a chip on his shoulder had refused to yield his seat.

So proud he was of his unbecoming behaviour as a soon-to-be sworn-in member of the House, he’d even recorded the entire episode for voters in the north to see and hail the boy they’d sent from Jaffna’s backwaters, as a provincial folk hero.

Apart from pulling off a publicity stunt with his debut performance in the House which shot him to national prominence last week, Jaffna’s brown eyed wonder, independent MP Ramanathan Archchuna has, since then, been releasing a steady stream of videos on social media and giving a ball-by-ball running commentary of his exploits in the north and east to a southern audience whom he has gauged as suckers to fall for his prenotions prattle.

The coarse coir running through his online tapestry is his grotesque glorification of Prabhakaran as a demigod worthy of worship. Not only in the tapes released but also in interviews with mainstream TV stations after taking his 6th amendment oath in Parliament, does he parrot his praise to the demigod he has added to the Hindu pantheon as a minor deity.

Not giving a toss to Sinhala sensitivities, he said: “Prabakaran is our god. We hold him as our god because he waged war against the Government, because in his name 40,000 people gave their lives to the cause. I say he is our god and I don’t care whether you like it or not.”

Earlier in a voice-cut to
the media, he had asked for the right to weep and mourn his demigod’s death.

To hear MP Archchuna elevating the ruthless terrorist to divine satus without a single qualm provoked the dormant blood of pent-up Sinhala fury, to rise again to war against glorifying the very symbol of Eelam.

Even an NPP lawyer Manoj Nanayakkara condemned Archchuna in a social media video, stating: “His uncalled for behaviour in Parliament must be deplored. We trust that Parliament will take the necessary steps to discipline him. After taking the oath to protect the Sri Lankan Constitution, there is no place in Parliament for racism or separatism to raise its head again. We have seen inside Parliament how people like Sumanthiran behaved. Compared to such great men, that doctor is like an insignificant speck of dust.”

Infuriated civil activists lodged a complaint at the CID last week. Civil rights activist Gunarathne Adhikari told reporters outside CID headquarters in Fort, “A serious issue has arisen with an MP’s online declaration that Prabakaran is his god. He has said this after swearing in Parliament that he is against separatism. It amounts to treason. It’s a dangerous trend which, if unchecked, can lead to a call for Eelam to rise again.”

Another civil activist lawyer Lalith Wijesundera claimed that, “Archchuna’s Facebook Live, begins with, ‘Ramanathan Archchuna from Thamil Eelam. Furthermore, his profile photo is a ‘Niyagala’ flower, or the ‘Neelam pushpa’ which is a symbol of Thamil Eelam.”

What’s more, Archchuna gives the lowdown on his background to a Sinhala daily newspaper reporter in a phone interview, and says: “I am a physician who worked at the state run Chavakachcheri Hospital. On September 26, 2024, I was interdicted by the Health Ministry. They sent me a letter stating in English in the heading, ‘Unacceptable behaviour of Dr, Ramanathan Archchuna’. At that time I was in jail.

“I was in jail between September 26 and October 9.  The reason I was in jail was because when I went to the hospital as a working director on June 13, I was told that there had been corruption at the hospital. There were 25 doctors, I took action against them. They left the hospital for three days. During this period I ran the hospital singlehandedly by myself. Then I posted details of the incident on social media. The people got angry with the striking doctors and went and assaulted the doctors. The doctors then filed action against me. Since the case is still ongoing, I cannot comment on it.”

Refereeing to the parliamentary incident when he sat on the seat reserved for the Opposition Leader, he says, “I was within my right to sit in any chair I wished, since the Opposition Leader had not been appointed. No wonder the Sinhalese say, ‘Sinhalaya modaya, kavum kanna yodhaya’. It is not the Tamil people who say ‘Sinhalaya modaya, kavum kanna yodhaya’ but the Sinhalese themselves who say it. If anyone still thinks I am a fool to have sat on the Opposition’s Leader’s seat, then you can publish that I said, ‘Sinhalaya modaya, kavum kanna yodhaya’.”

Ha, ha. Was Archchuna taking the mickey out of the Sinhalese, when he repeatedly mocked and taunted the Sinhalese by roasting them over their own fire? If it was out of ignorance of the age-old ability of the Sinhalese to laugh at themselves, then it is understandable. Very few races have a self-deprecating joke in their repertoire. But if his intention had been to rouse communal disharmony, then hasn’t he strayed beyond his ambit?

During the course of another taped recording, made prior to September 21, Archchuna is asked whether he has ever been treated for multiple personality disorders. He denies it. He is further asked, if he has divorced his wife and, if so, the reason. He admits and says, it’s for betrayal. “It was a cheating case,” he says. It’s well known.” Then he’s asked whether he secretly recorded her calls and published them on Facebook? He freely admits to publishing them on Facebook. He says, “I had some economic problems then but the Tamil Diaspora settled them completely. The Tigers are with me.”

Doesn’t this invite any decent eyebrow to be raised in distaste?

There’s one common factor that unites the man from the North, Archchuna, with the man from the South, ‘One Shot’ actor Ranjan Ramanayake. They share the same seedy taste in secretly recording private conversations and releasing tapes on social media. With Archchuna it was to record his first wife’s secret conversations and publish it on Facebook in revenge.  With Ranjan it’s far worse. His kink is to record lurid conversations with models and starlets and unleash it in the social domain.

And that’s not all. Amongst the videos he has released to the public domain, he proudly says his father served in the Sri Lanka Police but later joined the LTTE police force. Dr. Archchuna says: “I cannot subscribe to a common Sri Lankan identity but view ourselves as the Tamil people. How can I do otherwise when
the Sinhalese have been destroying us for
thirty years?”

So, folks, how do we solve a problem like Archchuna?

The new Speaker Dr. Ashoka Ranwala announced last Sunday that a formal investigation will be launched against Jaffna district MP Ramanathan Archchuna. Speaking to reporters after meeting Maha Nayakakes of the Asgiri and Malwathu Chapters, he said: “We do not know what his ambition is as an individual. The ambition of the people he represents is very clear. The public does not support such conduct in the current political climate.”

Amidst all this, the Colombo Additional Magistrate issued an order on Tuesday to arrest Dr. Ramanathan Archchuna for failing to attend court in connection with a traffic accident. It emerged that Dr Ramanathan Archchuna had in March 2021 caused a traffic accident down Baseline Road, Colombo, and had allegedly assaulted an individual.

How many more cats will jump out from his palm coir woven bag or how many more skeletons will stumble out and rattle from his online closet within the next five years, no one can guess.

Now that this unknown entity—who says his debts have been settled by the Diaspora and all the Tigers are with him—is ensconced in Sri Lanka’s Camelot; who skilfully pulled off a publicity coup on his first day in Parliament to rise to instant prominence; and who, within two weeks, succeeded to become the epi-centre of controversy, who has come from an independent group whose ambitions remain unknown, he should not be treated lightly.

Nor dismissed as a harmless clown in a lakeside circus, come as a virtual verbal timebomb, liable to blow the Big Top with his ambiguous guffaws and bring the tent crashing on an unsuspecting multicultural and multiracial audience.

Needless death of a colossus that brought millions of dollars A mighty colossus that forayed by the banks of the Kala Wewa has fallen not due to natural causes nor due to old age but due to an unauthorised live power line. Affectionately known as Deerga Danthu the First for the length of its two tusks, he had been the King of Tuskers, ruling the Kahalla-Pallekele Wildlife Sanctuary domain and had been Kala Wewa’s iconic resident elephant. KALA WEWA ICONIC TUSKER: The toast of tourists that brought millions of dollars to Lanka, says an environmentalist Wildlife Department officials said the tusker had moved toward the village, since Kala Wewa had burst its banks following the deluge of recent rain and got entangled with an electrified power line which had caused its untimely death. Its needless death is another blow for Lanka’s dwindling herd of tuskers, many of them the victims of electrified fences, train collisions, and gunshot injuries. More often than not, its prized tusks become the sole reason to be shot by ivory hunters. Environmentalist Nayanaka Ranwella told the media, “The death of Deerga Danthu the First has caused the country millions of dollars since some tourists travelled great distances to specifically see Kala Wewa’s iconic tusker. Its counterpart, Deerga Danthu the Second died in battle with another tusker two years ago. Deerga Danthu the First and Deerga Danthu the Second, known for their majestic beauty, commanded Kala Wewa vicinity and were great tourist attractions. Now both are gone.” Ranwella said: “Authorities had been warned about illegal electrified fences. They were urged to remove them since they posed a threat to elephants. Unfortunately, no measures have been taken to ensure the safety of these majestic animals. Previously, the elephant Walagamba was a dominant figure in the Kala Wewa zone. But it disappeared in late 2011 never to be seen again. No body, no skeleton, no tusks, no clue as to its disappearance has been discovered so far. Ranwella claimed, despite repeated complaints to responsible authorities, they have remained silent on the matter. He urged them to take action now or else the few that still remain in the forest, like Mahasen and Kawanthissa will meet the same fate. The Government, which pins its hopes on tourism, as a dependable cash cow to make the dollars flow into its Treasury coffers, should make haste to protect these magnificent wild beasts of nature that still perilously survive in fast shrinking forests, fraught, as they undoubtedly are, with ever-mounting dangers that threaten the Lankan elephant with extinction. Or else face the dismal prospect of attracting tourists to these island shores by showing off skeletal ruins in museum halls, as the excavated remains of mammoth mammals that once roamed on this Paradise isle, with a ‘Do Not Touch’ sign hanging on one of its ivory tusks.