Sri Lankan Tamil politician Kumar Ponnambalam was killed in an assassination suspected to have been sanctioned by President Chandrika Kumaratunga.

Sri Lankan Tamils, also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, form the plurality in the Eastern Province and are in the minority throughout the rest of the country. 70% of Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka live in the Northern and Eastern provinces.

Gaasinather Gangaser Ponnambalam was a Sri Lankan lawyer and politician. Leader of the All Ceylon Tamil Congress, he was the party's presidential candidate in 1982. He was shot dead on 5 January 2000 in an assassination many suspect to be ordered by President Chandrika Kumaratunga.

Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, commonly referred to by her initials CBK, is a Sri Lankan politician who served as the fifth president of Sri Lanka from 12 November 1994 to 19 November 2005. She is the longest-serving president in Sri Lankan history. She led the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) from 1994 to 2005.