‘Decision yet to be taken on PM’s visit to Lanka’: Chidambaram

Chennai – Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, who met Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) supremo M. Karunanidhi here on Saturday, said a final decision is yet to be taken on Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh’s visit Sri Lanka to participate in CHOGM later this month.

Talking to media here after meeting the DMK chief, Chidambaram said the subject is still under discussion.

“A final decision yet to be taken, the individual Congress leaders have expressed their opinion,” he added.

There has been stiff opposition from the political outfits in Tamil Nadu, including DMK and the AIADMK, over the Prime Minister’s visit to Sri Lanka.

CPI leader D. Raja today said the Centre should not undermine or ignore the unanimous resolution passed by the Tamil Nadu assembly and should take decision accordingly.

Raja said the Prime Minister must spell out his position on this issue.

“Why the Prime Minister is not speaking on such an important issue?” he asked.

The CPI leader said the Congress-led UPA II Government stands completely confused and divided.

“I understand the government suffers from a sense of guilt. What happened in Sri Lanka was nothing, but genocide against Tamil people, horrendous war crimes, human rights violation took place in Sri Lanka,” he added, while talking to ANI in New Delhi.

According to reports, senior UPA Ministers from Tamil Nadu also want the Prime Minister to skip the Commonwealth summit in Colombo on November 15.

The Tamil Nadu assembly unanimously adopted a resolution last moth that said India must boycott the session to register its protest against the Sri Lankan government’s failure to investigate and punish those who allegedly persecuted the island’s ethnic Tamils in the final phase of the civil war that ended in 2009 when the military  feared the rebel Tamil Tigers.

DMK supremo Karunanidhi has also warned that if the Prime Minister travels to Sri Lanka, ‘his party will have to face the consequences’.

“India should not participate in the meet, which means even a speck of rust from India should not go to the Commonwealth meeting,” he said.