On May 14 this year India extended the ban on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as an "unlawful" group by two more years.

‘And, Whereas, the LTTE’s objective for a separate homeland (Tamil Eelam) for all Tamils threatens the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India, and amounts to cession and secession of a part of the territory of India from the Union,’ the gazette notification issued by the Indian Home Ministry extending the ban said.

LTTE's surviving members are "regrouping in Tamil Nadu in pursuance of their avowed objective of establishing separate Tamil Eelam", said the notification.

It further said that through internet portals, the Tamil diaspora in the West was spreading "anti-India feeling among Sri Lankan Tamils by holding the top Indian political leaders and bureaucrats responsible for the defeat of the LTTE. Such propaganda through internet… are likely to impact VVIP security adversely in India,’’ the notification said.

The LTTE was first outlawed in India in 1992 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, a year after the rebels assassinated former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. Since then, the ban has been extended every two years.