5th Column

My dear Gammanpillayan,

I thought of writing to you now because you are constantly in the news these days, arguing your case for your new found friend, Pillayan. We know this is Paradise and nothing is impossible but even then, a ‘pivithuru’ chap pleading the case of a former terrorist is stretching our imagination quite a bit!

We should have known from the beginning that you are not really who you seemed to be, because you seemed too good to be true. In the early days, with your spotless white attire and a smile that seemed fixed, you followed Champika’s path every step of the way, doting on every word that he said.

You had that hunger for seeking attention even then. There was that election campaign where you said you had no money to launch a campaign and begged for a hundred rupees from us, the general public, to fund your campaign. It was a smart move, first asking us to finance you and then vote for you too!

Then, you were in the ‘jathika’ camp. There was no ‘pivithuru’ faction. It took you a while to realise that as long as you were with Champika, you would be dwarfed by his long shadow and will never be a leader. So, you broke away and formed the ‘pivithuru’ group, just as Sajith did with the Greens later.

Thereafter, there was hardly any love lost between Champika and you. You began calling him ‘Pa. Cha. Ranawaka’ and criticised his every move. He slowly drifted towards Uncle Ranil while you veered towards Mahinda maama. Joining you was your partner in crime, the inimitable Wimal.

Very soon, Wimal and you seemed inseparable politically, shouting the same slogans and making the same demands. Your cry was one of Sinhala nationalism, trying to save the ‘rata, jaathiya’ from many a conspirator. The votes that you attracted swelled Mahinda maama’s vote bank and helped him win.

To your credit, you stood by Mahinda maama when he was unexpectedly booted out of power by Aiyo Sirisena. By that time, your erstwhile friend Champika had joined Aiyo Sirisena and become a Cabinet minister while you were languishing in the opposition. That hurt a lot, didn’t it, Gammanpillayan?

It was while you were in the opposition that we saw your true colours. Teaming up with Wimal and the likes of ‘Athana Methana’ Rathana, you took your nationalism and conspiracy theories to a new level, targeting the Muslim community, especially in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday attacks,

We saw you at press briefings playing lawyer as you do now, telling us of the crimes allegedly committed by Dr. Shafi, calling it the ‘war of the womb’. Dr. Shafi, you claimed, was a greater terrorist that Zahran and should be given the death penalty. Today he has been acquitted by court!

Obviously, you were able to fool some people because the ‘R’ clan was back in the saddle just four years later, with Gota maama in charge. You were rewarded with the powerful ‘Energy’ portfolio. That must have given you special satisfaction because that was the subject held by Champika earlier.

Gammanpillayan, it is this track record that makes most people gasp in disbelief when they hear that you are defending Pillayan who was a child soldier for the Tigers and a man who has apologised for the terrorist attack on the Dalada Maligawa which occurred when he was still with the Tigers.

You are not only pleading Pillayan’s case, you are also anointing him a national hero just because his break-up with Velu laid the foundation for ending the war. There is some truth to that but we have learnt the hard way that winning the war shouldn’t give anyone a blank cheque to do as they please!

So, Gammanpillayan, when you call media conferences and tell us sob stories about how Pillayan cried as he asked whether this is how the nation repays him for ending terrorism, we honestly don’t know whether to laugh at his logic or cry at his wisdom in choosing you as his learned counsel.

Being the smart man that you are, it is difficult to imagine how it escaped your sharp mind that Pillayan is alleged to have been involved, not in terrorist attacks with Velu, but various other misdeeds that have no relevance at all to the Eelam war and that is why he is being detained and questioned.

As for your new career in law, I have good news for you. I think you may have another client. The other day, Deshabandu was accused of contempt of court for allegedly disobeying court orders. Your ingenuity in justifying Pillayan’s actions might be the type of talent that he needs to get off the hook!

People wonder why you are rushing to save Pillayan, especially when others such as Namal baby and Sarath of Civil Defence fame are also lining up to defend him. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread, it is said, but you are no fool. What is it that all of you are hiding or fearing, Gammanpillayan?

Yours truly,

Punchi Putha

PS- You may think you can reach greater heights in politics but seeing where you are today, you may have already had your best years behind you. As for your new career in law, you can now call yourself, ‘Gammanpillayan, P.C’. That is not President’s Counsel, of course, but Pillayan’s Counsel!