The CBI is investigating the role of Kumaran Pathmanathan, who had allegedly been the chief arms procurer of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), in the assassination of the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

The agency made the submission before the Madras High Court when a writ petition for a direction to the authorities to bring Pathmanathan to India for questioning came up before the First Bench, comprising Chief Justice S.K. Kaul and Justice M. Sathyanarayanan, on Friday.

In his petition, J. Mohanraj, general secretary of the Jebamani Janata Party, who had served in the Special Investigation Team that investigated the assassination case between 1991 and 1993, said Pathmanathan had been in charge of the LTTE’s overseas operations and had the task of collecting funds from Tamils abroad. The Centre had not shown any interest in questioning Pathmanathan, who was close to LTTE leader Prabakaran. The Multidisciplinary Monitoring Agency (MDMA) set up to go into the conspiracy angle behind the killing had been “hibernating for more than 15 years”. The Sri Lankan government dropped all charges against Pathmanathan.

Mohanraj petitioned the court to direct the Centre to dispose of his representation of June 3 last year.

The CBI said it was investigating Pathmanathan’s role. The final report may also reveal the role played by the persons concerned. The Bench said that in view of the CBI’s stand, it would be premature for the court to direct the agency to dispose of the petitioner’s representation. (The Hindu)