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The Karuna Group is suspected to be responsible for the abduction of Prof. S Raveendranath, the vice chancellor of the Eastern University last November, the missing academic's family said in a letter to UN Human Rights Commissioner Louise Arbour last week.
The Karuna Group however denied any responsibility over the abduction and said that the Tigers were to be blamed.
"We are suspecting that he was abducted by Karuna Group (para military) on 15/12/2006 after attending a Science Forum (in Colombo)," the family said in a letter that was handed over to Arbour at the UN compound on October 11.
The letter was originally sent to the UN Human Rights Commission last month during the sixth sessions.
The Karuna Group said that they have not been made aware officially of such a letter. "This is first we are hearing of such letter, it was the Tigers who were against the VC," Karuna Group Batticaloa Political Head V. Thileepan said.
The Raveendranath family has said that their appeals to the authorities have not been successful and have now sought the help of Arbour and the Council.
"We have with great pain of mind and body approached very high authorities with political powers to intervene in this matter and facilitate the release of his captivity. But, it is of no avail. There is ominous silence from all quarters," the letter said.
The family was informed by Arbour that the Council and her office were aware of the Raveendranath case and that The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances would be taking it up in November.
The family said that before the abduction, Prof. Raveendranath had received death threats demanding for his resignation and that even though the resignation has been accepted, there was still no new information on his whereabouts.
"In September 2006 Karuna Group demanding Prof. Raveendranath's resignation kidnapped the Dean of the Faculty of Arts of Eastern University of Sri Lanka, Dr. Bala Sugamar, and in the months thereafter Professor Raveendranath received repeated death threats demanding him to resign his post. He tendered his resignation on October 2, 2006 but it was accepted by the University Grants Commission on January 19, 2007. It was forwarded to the President's office for final approval. The office accepted his resignation on July 2007. They have advertised for the post of a new vice-chancellor to Eastern University officially," the letter said.
"We thought that his resignation was the prime demand of the abductors. But, still we have no news whether he is alive or not and his whereabouts, if he is alive," it added.
Theelipan however said "we have continuously said that it was the Tigers who were behind the crime."
Amantha Perera and Arthur Wamanan for Sunday Leader
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