Colombo, Feb 5 (IANS): A Sri Lankan court Thursday banned Kumaran Pathmanathan (KP), top leader of the Liberation Tamil Tigers of Eelam (LTTE), from leaving the country, Xinhua news agency reported.

Pathmanathan is on Interpol's most wanted list for various charges including arms smuggling and criminal conspiracy linked to the LTTE.

He is also wanted by India's law enforcement agencies in connection with the assassination of former Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991 and for violation of the Terrorist Act and the Indian Explosives Act.

KP, as he is also known, was appointed to lead the LTTE after it was militarily defeated by the Sri Lankan government in 2009. He was arrested in Malaysia and deported to Sri Lanka but was subsequently freed by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa.

However, calls for his arrest were renewed after Rajapaksa was ousted from power early last month.

Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), a coalition partner of the new government, filed a writ application in a bid to obtain an order to arrest and prosecute KP who was at one time LTTE's arms procurement wing leader.

The order to impound his passport was issued when the writ application was taken up for hearing by Justice A.H.M.D. Nawaz and Justice Vijith Malalgoda.

KP has publicly stated he is still living in Sri Lanka.