Ex-Lankan minister's trial over 1987 Choolaimedu shootout to be held via video conference

The counsel for former Sri Lankan Minister Dougles Devananda, an accused in a 29-year-old murder case in Chennai, on Monday furnished in a Sessions Court the e-mail ID of the Indian Embassy in Sri Lanka to enable conduct of the the trial through video conferencing.

Additional Government Pleader M Prabavathy submitted that the incident took place in the year 1987 and the police "with a great difficulty" produced the prosecution witnesses in the court.

Hence a decision has to be arrived at regarding trial through video conferencing to conclude the case at an early date, she submitted.

Stating that Devananda is ready to cooperate with the trial through video conferencing, the counsel furnished the e-mail ID of the embassy before the Additional Sessions Judge M Shanti.

Devananda is the third accused in the 1987 shootout at Choolaimedu in Chennai in which one person was killed. All of them were arrested, but absconded after being released on bail.

A Non-Bailable Warrant had been issued against Devananda, who later became a Minister in the Rajapakse government. Though he was part of a delegation that visited India in 2006 at the end of the civil war in the island nation, he was not arrested due to diplomatic immunity.

He did not return to India after that, but moved courts for cancellation of NBW.

The Judge posted the case to February 18.