NEW DELHI: After sharing a news article giving a detailed account of events that led to Sri Lanka overtaking the Katchatheevu island, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday slammed the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and said that the new details emerging in connection to the island have unmasked the DMK's double standards.
PM Modi shared a statement by late DMK MP Era Sezhiyan expressing anger at the India-Sri Lanka Maritime Agreement signed by the then Indira Gandhi government by which India relinquished its claim on Katchatheevu Island and called it "an unholy agreement."
"Rhetoric aside, DMK has done NOTHING to safeguard Tamil Nadu's interests. New details emerging on #Katchatheevu have UNMASKED the DMK's double standards totally. Congress and the DMK are family units. They only care that their own sons and daughters rise. They don't care for anyone else. Their callousness on Katchatheevu has harmed the interests of our poor fishermen and fisherwomen in particular," the Prime Minister wrote on X.
PM Modi's statement comes a day after he came down heavily on the Congress party for giving away the Katchatheevu island to Sri Lanka during the tenure of the Indira Gandhi government in 1974. Prime Minister Modi said on Sunday that this has infuriated people, adding that the Congress can never be trusted.
He also accused the Congress of weakening India's unity, integrity and interests during its years of governance.
"Eye opening and startling! New facts reveal how Congress callously gave away #Katchatheevu. This has angered every Indian and reaffirmed in people's minds- we can't ever trust Congress! Weakening India's unity, integrity and interests has been Congress' way of working for 75 years and counting," PM Modi posted on X, citing a news report.
It is pertinent to mention that the island, located between Rameswaram (India) and Sri Lanka, was traditionally used by both Sri Lankan and Indian fishermen. In 1974, then prime minister Indira Gandhi accepted Katchatheevu as Sri Lankan territory under the "Indo-Sri Lankan Maritime agreement". The 1974 Agreement regarding historic waters between Sri Lanka and India in the Palk Strait and the Palk Bay formally confirmed Sri Lanka's sovereignty over the Island.
