The proposed visit of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to India is creating ripples in Tamil Nadu, with Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), a constituent of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) having registered its protest against his tour.
On the sidelines of a conference on reservation in the private sector, organised in Chennai on Sunday, VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan said the Sri Lankan President should not be allowed into the country as he allegedly committed genocide against Tamils in the neighbouring nation.
“I will be meeting the Prime Minister or Minister of External Affairs in this connection, in a couple of days,” the Lok Sabha member from the Chidambaram constituency said.
“The island nation (Sri Lanka) has cordial relations with China and Pakistan. However, India’s friendly gestures towards Sri Lanka remains unreciprocated,” he said.
Asked whether he would make a collective representation before the PM in the company of other parliamentarians from Tamil Nadu, Thirumavalavan replied that no decision had been taken in this regard. He urged the government to improve the facilities for refugees in the country and provide them with identity cards.