Hold talks with Gotabaya on fishermen: Cong

Referring to Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksha’s talks with the Indian President and the Prime Minister during his visit to New Delhi after the landslide victory in the Presidential election, Alagiri said that the Indian government has the responsibility to secure the rights of the Island Tamils from the Lankan government.

Reiterating that separate Tamil Eelam could not be a solution and only devolution of greater powers would be the permanent solution to the problems of Lankan Tamils, the TNCC chief, in a statement, recalled the half a century-old struggle of Tamils to secure their rights and said the Indian government could not overlook its responsibility to safeguard the rights of the island Tamils citing the geopolitical scenario.

Remarking that the external affairs policy of Colombo was drifting of late towardsChina, which has been offering enormous financial assistanceto Lanka,

Alagiri said that though the government of India has the responsibility to prevent the influence of another nation on Lanka, it need not fear that the island would take a geopolitical stand against India and there was very little chance of Sri Lanka going against the advice of its closest neighbour India.