A land dispute in Jaffna has sparked outrage after a nursing mother was remanded by the Mallakam Magistrate’s Court, following a complaint lodged by independent Tamil MP Archchuna Ramanathan, who was filmed brandishing a firearm during a confrontation with residents.
The incident took place on Saturday in the Periyavilan area within the Ilavalai Police Division, on land claimed by the MP as ancestral property. According to Ramanathan, he had entered the plot to carry out clearing work when he was confronted by local residents who opposed his presence, alleging encroachment and disputing his actions.
Eyewitness accounts and widely circulated video footage show a heated altercation between the MP and a group that included several women. During the confrontation, Ramanathan produced a handgun reportedly issued by the Ministry of Defence for personal protection, an act that has drawn sharp criticism given the civilian nature of the dispute and the absence of firearms among those present.
Despite the presence of multiple individuals at the scene, it was a woman, identified in court as the mother of a one-year-old child, who was arrested after Ramanathan filed a complaint with Ilavalai Police. She was subsequently produced before the Mallakam Magistrate’s Court, which ordered her remand until April 29.
During proceedings, the court was informed that the woman is breastfeeding a one-year-old child. The Magistrate did not grant bail, instead 'permitting' the infant to remain with the mother during her period of remand.
The remanding of a nursing mother at the behest of a sitting MP has intensified scrutiny of both the police response and the broader use of legal mechanisms in private land disputes. Critics have raised concerns over the apparent imbalance in how the incident has been handled, particularly given the MP’s visible display of a state-issued firearm during the confrontation.
Ramanathan has maintained that he acted in self-defence, alleging that he faced verbal abuse and physical threats, including claims that one individual wielded a club and that he sustained minor injuries during the altercation. However, these assertions remain contested, with footage instead fuelling allegations of intimidation against unarmed civilians.