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Tuesday, January 19, 2010 - 04.35 GMT |
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TNA trying to
drag India into SL politics - Former Indian
MP |
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The
Tamil
National
Alliance
(TNA) is
engaged
in a
despicable
campaign
to drag
India
into the
internal
politics
of Sri
Lanka by
falsely
asserting
that
India
supports
opposition
candidate
General
(retd)
Sarath
Fonseka
in the
forthcoming
Presidential
election,
former
MP and
former
Secretary
of the
Congress
Parliamentary
Party of
India,
Dr. R.
Anbarasu
said.
Issuing
a
statement
Dr.
Anbarasu
said,
the
mischievous
statement
by TNA
MP Mavai
Senathirajah
that
India
has
endorsed
the
TNA's
decision
to
support
the
retired
General
is aimed
at
demonstrating
to the
Tamils
in Sri
Lanka,
particularly
the
Indian
origin
Tamils
that the
former
Army
Commander
enjoys
the
support
of
India.
What
Senathirajah
implies
is that
President
Mahinda
Rajapaksa
has lost
favor
with
India
and
India
has now
accepted
Fonseka
as a
viable
alternative,
he said.
“It is a
calculated
mischievous
political
move to
bring
India
into
conflict
with Sri
Lanka as
any
indication
of
support
to
either
of the
main
candidates
would
amount
to
interference
in the
internal
affairs
of a
sovereign
country,”
he said.
“India
has good
neighbourly
relations
with Sri
Lanka
and it
appears
that the
TNA MPs
who are
pro-
LTTE
would
like to
damage
our
relations
with Sri
Lanka,”
he
added.
The
full
text of
the
statement:
Sri
Lanka's
Tamil
National
Alliance
(TNA) is
engaged
in a
despicable
campaign
to drag
India
into the
internal
politics
of Sri
Lanka by
falsely
asserting
that
India
supports
General
Sarath
Fonseka
in the
forthcoming
Sri
Lankan
Presidential
Election.
A four
member
TNA
delegation
consisting
of MPs
R.
Sampanthan,
Mavai
Senathirajah,
Suresh
Premachandran
and
Selvam
Adaikalanathan
came to
New
Delhi
last
week
after
telling
the Sri
Lankan
media
that
they
have
been
invited
by India
for
talks
with the
government
leaders.
At the
end of
their
visit, a
prominent
member
of the
delegation
Mr.
Mavai
Senathirajah
had
given an
interview
to the
Sri
Lankan
Tamil
newspaper
"Uthayan"
saying
that
India
has
endorsed
the
TNA's
decison
to
support
General
Sarath
Fonseka
in the
forthcoming
Sri
Lankan
presidential
election.
This
news
item
received
wide
publicity
in Sri
Lanka,
particularly
among
the Sri
Lankan
Tamils.
Before
arriving
in New
Delhi,
the TNA
delegation
had told
the
media
that
they
have
been
officially
invited
by India
for
urgent
talks
with the
Indian
government
leaders.
My
inquiries
revealed
that
there
was no
official
Indian
invitation
for the
Tamil
National
Alliance
delegation
to visit
India.
Both the
External
Affairs
Minister's
Office
and
National
Security
Advisor's
Office
confirmed
that no
such
invitation
was ever
made.
According
to Sri
Lankan
Tamil
media
reports,
members
of the
TNA MPs
delegation
were
only
able to
meet
with our
Foreign
Secretary
Nirupama
Rao and
some
unnamed
Indian
officials
during
their
stay in
New
Delhi.
The very
fact
that
neither
the
External
Affairs
Minister
Mr. S.
M.
Krishna
nor the
National
Security
Advisor
Mr. M.
K.
Narayanan,
who
usually
handles
the
visiting
Sri
Lankan
leaders
did not
meet the
TNA
delegation
is proof
that TNA
delegation
was
never
invited
to
India.
They
might
have
been
sent to
New
Delhi by
General
Sarath
Fonseka,
who is
very
keen to
enlist
the
support
of
India,
so that
their
visit to
India
could be
used in
influence
the Sri
Lankan
Tamil
voters.
The
mischievous
statement
made by
Mr.
Mavai
Senathirajah
to the
Sri
Lankan
Tamil
newspaper
"Uthayan"
that
India
has
endorsed
TNA's
decision
to
support
General
Sarath
Fonseka
is aimed
at
demonstrating
to the
Tamils
in Sri
Lanka,
particularly
the
Indian
Origin
Plantation
Tamils,
that the
former
Sri
Lankan
Army
Commander
enjoys
the
support
of
India.
What
Senathirajah
implies
is that
President
Mahinda
Rajapaksa
has lost
favour
with
India
and
India
has now
accepted
Sarath
Fonseka
as a
viable
alternative.
It is a
calculated
mischievous
political
move to
bring
India
into
conflict
with Sri
Lanka as
any
indication
of
support
to
either
of the
main
candidates
would
amount
to
interference
in the
internal
affairs
of a
sovereign
country.
India
has good
neighbourly
relations
with Sri
Lanka
and it
appears
that TNA
MPs who
are pro
LTTE
would
like to
damage
our
relations
with Sri
Lanka.
As a
senior
Congress
member
from
Tamil
Nadu who
had been
associated
with my
late
leaders
Shrimathi
Indira
Gandhi
and Shri
Rajiv
Gandhi
in
finding
a
peaceful
settlement
of the
Sri
Lankan
Tamil
problem,
I have a
duty to
expose
the
mischievous
conduct
of the
TNA
Parliamentarians.
I have
brought
to the
attention
of our
External
Affairs
Minister
Mr. S.
M.
Krishna,
National
Security
Advisor
Mr. M.
K.
Narayanan
and the
Foreign
Secretary
Ms.
Nirupama
Rao
about
the
mischievous
statement
made by
Mr.
Senathirajah.
I have
asked
them to
issue an
official
denial
and
clear
any
misunderstandings
that
would
have
been
created
in the
minds of
the
present
Sri
Lankan
government
leaders.
It is an
established
fact
that the
Tamil
National
Alliance
Mps are
pro LTTE
and they
were
made
Members
of
Parliament
at the
last Sri
Lankan
Parliamentary
Election
by LTTE
leader
Prabhakaran
after
the TNA
publicly
acknowledged
that the
LTTE is
the sole
representative
of the
Sri
Lankan
Tamils.
It is
believed
that the
present
LTTE
leaders
are
behind
TNA's
decision
to
support
General
Sarath
Fonseka
as the
LTTE
media
had made
it known
that
they
would
like to
use
Sarath
Fonseka
as a
weapon
to
destroy
President
Mahinda
Rajapaksa
as a
revenge
for the
death of
Prabhakaran
and
other
LTTE
leaders
in May
this
year.
The
present
LTTE
leadership
continues
to blame
India
for the
defeat
and
destruction
of LTTE.
The
Tamil
National
Alliance
(TNA)
Parliamentarians
should
not be
entertained
in India
again.
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