COLOMBO: The Sri Lankan government on Thursday told the Supreme Court that it was stopping forthwith fresh registration of Tamils in the northern districts of Jaffna and Kilinochchi, which had seen fierce fighting in the 30-year war against the Tamil Tigers.

The Tamils had been critical of periodic registration as other communities in the country seemed to be exempt from it. This time round, the army was also photographing both individuals and families.

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA), which is the single largest party in the northern province, had gone to the Supreme Court with a fundamental rights petition challenging the registration.

A spokesman for the government justified fresh registration, saying that the military had resorted to it only because there were many disputes over properties abandoned during the war, and squatters were occupying these properties.

Earlier, the Jaffna army commander had said that the army was trying to ascertain who were permanent residents of Jaffna and who were outsiders so that the rising crime wave could be tackled.