Hundreds pay homage to late son of LTTE chief in Chennai

Hundreds of people gathered in Chennai on Sunday to pay homage to late Balachandran, son of the late founder of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), who died during the final phase of the Sri Lankan civil war in May 2009.

Late LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran and his 10-year-old son Balachandran were reportedly killed in the armed conflict that started in 1983, when the LTTE launched insurgent attacks against the government aiming to establish an independent Tamil state in the island nation.

Based on some photographs, media reports had suggested that Balachandran was murdered. However, the Sri Lankan government said that Balachandran and other rebel leaders were killed in crossfire during the war.

On the occasion, founder and General Secretary of the regional Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party, Vaiko, sought autonomy for Tamils residing in Sri Lanka.

"They are not demanding any separation. They are fighting to get their homeland, which they ruled for thousands of years," he said.

Tens of thousands of civilians were killed in 2009 in the final months the war, a United Nations (UN) panel has said.