The first maveeran of Tamileelam, Lt. Shankar
The first maveeran of Tamileelam, Lt. Shankar
Lieutenant Shankar
Selvachandran Sathyanathan
Tamileelam: Yarlpanam District
Birth: 19.06.1961
Death: 27.11.1982
Lt. Shankar was the first maveeran of the Tamileelam liberation struggle. Today, Lt. Shankar is a determined fighter who has become the first stone for the Tamileelam liberation struggle to be closely watched worldwide.
Lt. Shankar, whose real name is Sathyanathan, was born in 1961. In 1977 after writing a letter at home, he reached the camp of the LTTE operating on a farm. The national leader of the LTTE, V. Prabhakaran, looked at him closely as he came. The young man was small in appearance. The struggle for survival is very difficult. In order to defeat the targeted enemy, one has to wander around for many days, throwing dirt in the eyes of the enemy. One cannot stay in one place permanently. There is no food at the time. Or one has to go without food for many days. Will the boy have the mental strength to endure all this?
According to the national leader Prabhakaran, Satyanathan returns home to continue his studies.
His parents thought, ‘He is an ignorant person. He has come home after wandering around for a few days. He will continue his studies properly from now on.’ But Satyanathan’s inner determination did not fade. He also developed the idea of being a fighter. In the meantime, he decided to take driving lessons to support the struggle and succeeded in it.
One night in late 1978, other fighters came to pick up Satyanathan who had come before them again. There were smiles on their faces. Satyanathan’s determination was evident in it. Satyanathan was given a nickname that suited his life in hiding. Satyanathan became a LTTE member as Shankar.
Like Shankar’s mind, his body also became strong. He worked tirelessly. His interest in everything was always active. As comrades gathered and held seminars, made plans, and discussed. Shankar’s political knowledge expanded. It developed.
In the early days of the movement, only a select few were given weapons training. Shankar showed interest in shooting with a revolver in his spare time and developing his weapons knowledge through English movies. In 1979, Shankar was given target shooting training with small arms.
Shankar received a 0-45 revolver as a reward from the national leader for his skill in target shooting. After Shankar got it, he further developed his skills with it. He became unrivaled in shooting with both hands. The revolver was well maintained, cleaned and polished daily.
In 1979, the government, which had announced the ban on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), expanded its search and rescue operations with the aim of destroying the LTTE. Shankar’s name also became known to the enemy. He was also wanted.
In 1981, Shankar was given training in operating modern weapons. Shankar became a member of the assault squad.
On 2nd August 1982, the day Shankar was to engage in his first armed encounter with the enemy, seven militants attacked a police jeep patrolling in Nelliyadi as planned. Shankar had a revolver, another fighter had a machine gun, and the LTTE had no other weapons.
First, the enemy vehicle driver was shot down. Shankar’s long-standing dream began to come true. Four of the enemy were killed in the successful attack. Their weapons were captured. The LTTE successfully recovered without any losses.
In 1982, two bodyguards were selected for the protection of the national leader Prabhakaran for the first time. Shankar was also selected as one of them. At that time, only two G-3s of modern weapons were in service with the movement. One of these was given to Shankar.
Shankar was involved not only in military attacks but also in politicizing the people. All this had to be done through the operation of netting the LTTE.
The search and hunt by the armed force are in full swing. Shankar is in the house of a lecturer who was a supporter of the LTTE movement. The armed force sniff this out. The house is besieged. The siege is complete. Shankar’s hand tightens the grip of the revolver on his waist. Shankar decides to run away. One of the bullets that has flown out hits Shankar’s stomach. Blood soaks the ground. Although his body is tired, his heart is not tired. He must not let his revolver fall into the hands of the enemy. In any case, he must have run for almost two miles to strengthen his heart with the thought of handing it over to his comrade. With the help of someone he knows, he reaches the place where his friends are secretly meeting. Shankar hands over the revolver to his comrades and falls unconscious.
The government forces were furious that the fighter, who was trapped in the siege, had lost his grip. The supporter was arrested. The search was intensified. The army was all over the streets. The injured man could not be taken out. Shankar, who had vomited blood, fainted. Five days passed. A motorboat was prepared to take Shankar to India. Amidst great difficulty, Shankar was somehow brought ashore. There too, adequate treatment could not be provided. His health worsened day by day.
27-11-1982 – A day that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam will never forget. The day that inspired the minds of the people of Tamileelam. It was the day that the liberation war was launched with thousands of fighters.
The tears that filled the eyes of the national leader fell and paid tribute to the maveeran.
The body of the first LTTE, Lt. Shankar, who died bravely in the war for the right to save the homeland, was cremated in India outside Tamileelam. His death was also made public only after the connection between the people and the LTTE had been severed.
Out of the thousands of fighters who followed in the footsteps of this hero, more than 40,000 fighters have sacrificed themselves for the liberation war. The day of Lt. Shankar’s martyrdom is observed as Maveerar Naal (Hero´s Day) by the people of Tamileelam as a day to remember all these maveerar and their ideal journey continues with many victories and determination.
Holding his hands tightly in the lap of the national leader Prabhakaran, Shankar gave up his life while saying “Brother”.
(Translation by Tamilpriya)
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