His two-month visit to this country, his first since fleeing in 1990, was shrouded in secrecy. Perumal came here, presumably in search of a political role. He immediately set off speculation that he had been offered a prominent position by President Chandrika Kumaratunga. However, dashing all rumours, Kumaratunga did not find the time to meet him during his stay here. Perumal also did not live up to expectations -- that he was here to forge an alliance between the government and the opposition on the ethnic issue. Or that his return would spur the formation of a united Tamil front againstthe LTTE.

Very unlike a politician seeking to re-establish himself after long years in exile, Perumal maintained a low profile through his two-month stay here, meeting only a handful of political friends.

Leader of the the Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front(EPRLF), Perumal was whisked off from Trincomalee in a RAW chartered-plane in March 1990 after the dramatic collapse of Sri Lanka's only experiment with devolution of power in its embattled north-east. Hours before fleeing, Perumal, who was the chief minister of the province, had declared independence from Sri Lanka. However, the declaration did not endear him to the LTTE, who had him marked for his claim to leadership of the Tamil people.He remains on the group's hit-list to this day. This was presumably one reason why Perumal never once declared his presence in Sri Lanka during his visit. During his short stay, he took the precaution of changing addresses frequently and was guarded by the police and few trusted cadres of his party. Evensenior EPRLF leaders had no idea what he was up to during his visit. However, he did manage to make swift, clandestine visits to Jaffna and Batticaloa to meet a few trusted friends.