The Tamil People's National Alliance (abbreviated TPNA; Tamil: தமிழ் மக்கள் தேசிய கூட்டணி, romanized: Tamiḻ Makkaḷ Tēciya Kūṭṭaṇi), also known as the Thamizh Makkal Tesiya Kootani (abbreviated TMTK), is a political alliance in Sri Lanka that represents the country's Sri Lankan Tamil ethnic minority. It was formed in February 2020 by a group of Tamil nationalist parties after they broke away from the Tamil National Alliance. The alliance is recognised by the Election Commission of Sri Lanka as registered political party with the fish as its symbol.[1]
Tamil People's National Alliance தமிழ் மக்கள் தேசிய கூட்டணி | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | TPNA/TMTK |
| Leader | C. V. Vigneswaran |
| President | Suresh Premachandran |
| General Secretary | Sivasakthy Ananthan |
| Founded | 9 February 2020 |
| Split from | Tamil National Alliance |
| Headquarters | 26/10, First Lane, Kandy Road, Vavuniya, Sri Lanka. |
| Ideology | Tamil nationalism |
| Parliament | 0 / 225 |
| Election symbol | |
Fish  | |
| Party flag | |
 | |
| Website | |
| thetmk | |
History
editOn 9 February 2020 four parties, consisting of dissident members of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), signed a memorandum of understanding at the Tilko Hotel in Jaffna to form the Tamil People's National Alliance (Thamizh Makkal Tesiya Kootani) to contest the parliamentary election.[2][3] The four parties were:[2][4]
- Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF), led by former MP Suresh Premachandran
- Eelam Tamil Self Rule Party (Eela Thamilar Suyatchchi Kazhagam, ETSK), led by provincial minister Ananthi Sasitharan
- Tamil National Party (Thamizh Thesiya Katchi, TTK), led by former MPs M. K. Shivajilingam and N. Srikantha
- Tamil People's Alliance (Thamizh Makkal Kootani, TMK), led by former chief minister C. V. Vigneswaran
The TPNA claimed that it would give alternative leadership for the Tamil people as the TNA, which had dominated Tamil politics since its formation in 2001, had moved away from its manifesto and had failed to deliver on the pledges made to the Tamil people of north-eastern Sri Lanka.[2][3]
Vigneswaran's is the alliance's leader while Premachandran is president and Sivasakthy Ananthan is general-secretary.[5][6] The alliance has an eleven-member governing council chaired by Vigneswaran - six from the TMK, two each from the EPRLF and TTK and one from the ETSK.[5]
Electoral history
edit| Election | Northern Province | Eastern Province | National | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | |
| 2020 Parliamentary[7] | 44,716 | 7.89% | 1 | 6,585 | 0.73% | 0 | 51,301 | 0.44% | 1 |
Election results
edit2020 Parliamentary General Election
editIn the 2020 Sri Lankan parliamentary election, in which the Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance , led by Mahinda Rajapaksa, retained power, the Tamil People's National Alliance, led by C. V. Vigneswaran, won 0.44% of the popular vote and 1 out of 225 seats in the Sri Lankan parliament.
Votes and seats won by the TPNA by electoral district
| Electoral District |
Votes | % | Seats | Turnout | TPNA MPs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jaffna | 35,927 | 10.00% | 1 | 68.92% | C. V. Vigneswaran (TPA) |
| Vanni | 8,789 | 4.23% | 0 | 39.60% | |
| Batticaloa | 4,960 | 1.66% | 0 | 76.83% | |
| Trincomalee | 1,625 | 0.76% | 0 | 78.62% | |
| Total | 51,301 | 0.44% | 1 | 75.89% | |
| Source:"Parliamentary General Election – 2020". | |||||
References
edit- ^ "Recognized Political Parties". Rajagiriya, Sri Lanka: Election Commission of Sri Lanka. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ a b c "New alliance for North". Daily FT. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 10 February 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ a b Rajasingham, K. T. (10 February 2020). "Disgruntled Tamil elements form a new alliance to divides Tamils further". Asian Tribune. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ "Two Factions in Tamil Politics: History Repeats Itself!". Ceylon Today. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 14 March 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ a b Jeyaraj, D. B. S. (24 March 2020). "How Will the TNA fare at Parliamentary Election?". The Daily Mirror. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ "Polls at last; lacklustre election campaign ends tonight". The Sunday Times. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 2 August 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ "Parliamentary Election - 05-08-2020 Official Election Results" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka.