India closely monitoring Chinese ship in Lankan port: Union Min

TIRUCHY: The Government of India has been closely watching everything in terms with the stationed ‘spy ships’ by China around Sri Lanka and would act at proper time to protect national security, said the Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan here on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters, Muraleedharan who came here to participate in a series of programmes, said, the Government of India has been initiating a judicial process for the retrieval of Katchatheevu at the international level. “And so, it is not apt to talk more about the issue”, he said.

While answering a query about the ‘spy ships’ across the Sri Lankan water by China, the minister said that the Union Government has been closely watching the situation and there will not be any soft approach in terms of national security, he said.

Claiming that the BJP has been gaining the support of the people from Tamil Nadu, minister Muraleedharan said, the Tamil Nadu unit of BJP has been vehemently opposing corruption and nepotism in the state and so in near future, the BJP will get the maximum support from the people of Tamil Nadu.

Meanwhile, responding to the comments about the Tamil Nadu politicians about Savarkar claiming that he was not a freedom fighter, the minister pointed out that only DMK has been denying the fact about Savarkar. “They (DMK) should read history before commenting about him”, the minister added.

Lankan minister hopes not to be diplomatic issue

Amid concerns over a visit by Chinese ship ‘Yuan Wang 5’ to his country, Sri Lanka’s tourism minister Harin Fernando said here on Saturday that he hoped it would not cause a major diplomatic row as India understands its situation.

In Ahmedabad to promote tourism in the island nation, Fernando said China has made a lot of investment in Sri Lanka and has been “understanding its requirements in the past.” Indian authorities have expressed worries about the ship’s snooping capability.

Fernando said Sri Lanka’s President and its foreign minister were in constant touch with the Indian government.