People from Coimbutore in Tamilnadu will always remember Leb. Somesh
People from Coimbutore in Tamilnadu will always remember Leb. Somesh
Leb. Somesh
Somesh is the hero among the trainees of the 10th training camp of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (in Tamil Nadu). There is always a crowd around him. If new members coming to the training camp, senior members who have been trained, or outsiders who have come to visit the training camp, Somesh will talk to everyone in a suitable way and gather complete information. At the same time, he will also explain to them the procedures there.
He will be the bridge between those who come there and others. Because during training, the trainees cannot talk to anyone unnecessarily. Everyone has come from different places and does not know each other. Therefore, they will hesitate to talk. But Somesh becomes everyone’s favorite, because of the way he interacts.
During mealtimes, the other trainees would ask him for explanations. He would explain in anything detail. While everyone was sitting in a group, Somesh would sit in the middle. He would go around and eat the meal, observing everyone. He would tell stories and then serve the meal he had prepared. When you eat it alone, it would feel like it was a training meal. But only when Somesh was serving, it would it be delicious. It would be like being at home with your brothers and having your mother cook for you. If the newcomers refused to eat out of shyness, Somesh would forcefully make them eat.
- Thanks, Tamil National Media
For those who were tired during the training and left the ground, the tiredness would fly away as soon as they saw Somesh. Hearing his jokes and stories would give them new enthusiasm. Everyone wish that Somesh would come to the same place they were going.
They believed that they could always be enthusiastic if they had him. Somesh had hugged the fighters who were sent to different places from the camp for each task and sent them away with tears in his eyes. Those scenes are unforgettable for anyone who knew him.
Considering his way of interacting with everyone and his ability to explain things, Somesh was selected to carry out the LTTE student movement work in the Coimbutore area.
Somesh carried out the student movement work well. The people of Coimbutore who were acquainted with him at that time will always be supporters of this struggle. No obstacles can change their course. They have realized what a high quality a fighter has and how many high sacrifices this struggle has been built on, after being acquainted with Somesh. Whatever they do, he wants to fight from his own land. The news about his homeland constantly created a state of mind that he could not be there. He kept insisting that he should “go to the country”. He was the right person to carry out the work of the student movement. But he could not bear his worrying and was sent to a camp on the coast of Tamil Nadu to be sent to Tamileelam. After working there for some time, he got the privilege of returning to his homeland.
At that time, the Sri Lankan army had occupied the entire area of his native village, Palaly. The inhabitants of that land were made refugees by the military camp set up to prevent illegal immigrants. Since he was from this area and knew the area well, he was included in the investigation group of that area. He had the satisfaction of doing the task that history had given him.
While he was on duty at the Katuwan Police Station, he was injured in a clash with the Sri Lankan army on 21-05-87.
While Somesh was in the Yarlpanam Hospital with an injured leg, his mother came to visit him. She could not bear the pain. So, she asked, “You have worked for the movement for so long. Now come home. You have seven sisters to take care of. You have to work for them.” But Somesh was so angry that he forgot where he was and even the hospital. “When all mothers send their children to fight, you ask me to come home?! Are you a mother too? The soldiers are everywhere now. Get out of here! If you talk about this from now on, I will never home,” he shouted. The mother moved away in pain.
There were a few reasons why Somesh spoke to his mother like that.
First, it was the first day that Somesh had been injured in Yarlpanam. Radha, who was the district commander, had lost his life in a clash with the Sri Lankan army. That too in the same Katuwan area where Somesh was injured. The anger at losing Radha, who had loved him with motherly care, was bubbling up inside him. While he was in grief over losing Radha, he could not bear the thought of his mother coming and asking him this. Next, the pain of his injury. If it were not for these two, Somesh would have laughed and talked in his usual way and expressed his disapproval. Poor family situation, seven sisters. He had affection for his family, but his affection for the nation was greater than that.
When the war with the Indian RAW started, Somesh got the opportunity to fight with the G. P. M. G. In places like Kulapitty, Vaddukottai, Elalai, the Indian soldiers suffered heavy losses from their team.
On 04-08-88, Somesh lost his life in a clash with the Indian army at Nithigai Kulam. The Indian army, which had captured one of our camps in Nithigai Kulam, returned to the camp from which they had left. The blow they received on the way back guided them back to the same camp. They went back there and decided on their next step. In this situation, Somesh decided to attack the camp to teach the Indian army. He knew in his mind how the attack, which he was going to carry out at a very close distance, was going to go. So, he went with ten hand grenades.
The fight was very fierce as he had planned. Somesh returned after all ten grenades were used up and took many more grenades and went to fight again. In that attack, we got many weapons, such as an L. M. G. gun, a brown L. M. G. gun, many bullets, but we lost Somesh.
Somesh, who explains to us when we have doubts about matters related to general knowledge. Somesh, who solves any problem of the fighters without going beyond himself. Somes, the protagonist of the tenth camp. Somesh who is always present in the minds of the people of Coimbutore.
We cannot believe that he is no more today. When we think of him, a very important incident comes to mind.
After the war with the Indian army started, the Indian army was capturing every place. We had left the Yarlpanam district and gone to the Vanni forest. The situation of what would happen next. Then Somesh said, “Now the Indian Army is going taste our gun. They will study how our forest is. W will teach him.” Somesh’s style gave everyone new enthusiasm.
They shouldered their weapons with determination. Just as Somesh said, the Indian Army studied how the Tamileelam forest is. It paid a lot for it. When the Indian Army left our land, we came back from the forest towards Yarlpanam. On the way, we saw a place where and Somesh said, “Now the Indian Army is going to taste our gun,” and we were excited.
That sweetness was no longer there. Somesh did not like if we are weak. We got into the carriage again, checking our guns, and hurried to visit his birthplace, Palaly. I remember the words he told his mother. “It’s time for all mothers to send their children to fight.”
– Senthalan, from the field.
– Thank you
– Tamileelam Archives
(Translation by Tamilpriya)
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