Arumugam Thiagarajah ( ta, ஆறுமுகம் தியாகராஜா; 17 April 1916 – 25 May 1981) was a

Sri Lankan Tamil Sri Lankan Tamils ( or ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, live in significant numbers in the Eastern Pr ...

teacher, politician and Member of Parliament.

Early life

Thiagarajah was born on 17 April 1916. He was principal of Karainagar Hindu College.

Career

Thiagarajah stood as the

All Ceylon Tamil Congress All Ceylon Tamil Congress ( ta, அகில இலங்கைத் தமிழ்க் காங்கிரஸ்), is the oldest Tamil political party in Sri Lanka. History The ACTC was founded in 1944 by G.G. Ponnambalam. Ponnambalam ask ...

's candidate in

Vaddukoddai Vaddukoddai (also spelt Vattukkottai, Vatukotai, Vattukotai) ( ta, வட்டுக்கோட்டை, si, වඩුකෝඩයි) is small but important town in the minority group, minority Sri Lankan Tamils, Sri Lankan Tamil dominated J ...

at the 1970 parliamentary election. He won the election and entered Parliament. He later defected to the governing

Sri Lanka Freedom Party The Sri Lanka Freedom Party ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය, translit=Śrī Laṁkā Nidahas Pakṣaya; ta, இலங்கை சுதந்திரக் கட்சி, translit=Ilaṅkai Cutantirak Ka� ...

(SLFP) and voted for the new republican constitution. He was labelled a traitor by Tamil militants and Tamil nationalists. He was the target of an assassination attempt at his Colombo home in 1972. Thiagarajah contested the 1977 parliamentary election as an independent candidate but was resoundingly defeated by the Tamil United Liberation Front candidate

T. Thirunavukarasu Thamodarampillai Thirunavukarasu ( ta, தாமோதரம்பிள்ளை திருநாவுக்கரசு; 1 September 1933 – 1 August 1982) was a Sri Lankan Tamil politician and Member of Parliament. Early life Thirunav ...

Assassination

The United National Party chose Thiagarajah to be its lead candidate in Jaffna District at the 1981 District Development Council election. Tamil militant groups had warned candidates not to contest for the UNP. He was shot by the militant

People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam The People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) is a former Tamil militant group that had become a pro-government paramilitary group and political party. PLOTE's political wing is known as the Democratic People's Liberation Front. Ori ...

(PLOTE) on 24 May 1981 as he was addressing an election meeting in Moolai. He died on the next day 25 May 1981 in hospital.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thiagarajah, A. 1916 births 1981 deaths All Ceylon Tamil Congress politicians Assassinated Sri Lankan politicians Members of the 7th Parliament of Ceylon People from Northern Province, Sri Lanka People killed by the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam People from British Ceylon Sri Lanka Freedom Party politicians Tamil politicians Sri Lankan Tamil teachers United National Party politicians 1980s assassinated politicians