Theepan

Brigadier
Theepan
Brigadier Theepan
தீபன்
Born	V. Baheerathakumar; 8 January 1966
Died	4 April 2009 (aged 43); Ananthapuram, Mullaitivu District
Organization	Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
Call sign	Tango Papa
Military service
Allegiance	Tamil Eelam
Branch	Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
Service years	1984 –2009
Conflicts	Sri Lankan Civil War Eelam War I, between 1984 and 1987; Indian intervention in the Sri Lankan Civil War, between 1987 and 1990; Eelam War II, between 1990 and 1995; Eelam War III, between 1995 and 2002; Eelam War IV, between 2006 and 2009;

Velayuthapillai Baheerathakumar (Tamil: வேலாயுதபிள்ளை பகீரதகுமார் Vēlāyutapiḷḷai Pakīratakumār; 8 January 1966 – 4 April 2009; commonly known by the nom de guerre Theepan) was a leading member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a separatist Tamil militant organisation in Sri Lanka. He played a leading role in the LTTE's military victories in the Vanni during Eelam War III, including Mullaitivu (1996), Kilinochchi (1998), Oddusuddan (1999) and Elephant Pass (2000). He was killed at the Battle of Ananthapuram in the last days of the Sri Lankan Civil War. Theepan is considered to be one of the finest field commanders of the LTTE, and widely seen as a close second to Brigadier Balraj.