[2][8] In 1982 A Sri Lankan court sentenced Maheswaran, in absentia, to 15 years rigorous imprisonment for the attempted murder.

[11] After leaving the LTTE, Maheswaran founded his own militant group, the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE).

[12] On the night of 19 May 1982, Maheswaran and fellow PLOTE members Jotheeswaran and Sivaneswaran (Nirnajan) were involved in a shootout with Prabhakaran and Raghavan (Sivakumar) of the LTTE at the Pondy bazaar in Thiyagarayanagar, Madras, India.

[3] Maheswaran's actions eventually led to divisions within the PLOTE, resulting in a number of defections and splinter groups to be formed, including the Eelam National Democratic Liberation Front (ENDLF).

[18] His bullet ridden body was later found at Frankfurt Place, Bambalapitiya, near the Maldivian High Commission.