Centre should help Lankan Tamils: Vaiko

Tiruchirapalli, Sep 8: Marumalarchi DMK General Secretary Vaiko said the Centre was bound to accord permission to the supply of food and medicine to the 'suffering' Sri Lankan Tamils, through the Red Cross. Speaking at a public meeting here last night, organised by the Coordination Committee of Supporters of Freedom for Tamil Eelam, Mr Vaiko said the Centre must take appropriate steps to allow supply of food and medicines collected by various Tamil organisations in Tamil Nadu for the Lankan Tamils.

''It was essentially the duty of the Centre to supply food and medicines to the affected Tamils on humanitarian grounds, ''he added.

He wanted to know what actually prevented the Centre from granting permission to the supply of food and medicines through the Red Cross.

While welcoming the Centre's move in supplying food and medicines to war-ravaged Afghanistan and African countries, Mr Vaiko wondered why the Government could not display the same concern in the case of Lankan Tamils.

He said his party would extend full support to the initiative taken by Tamil organisations in this regard.

In his address Tamilar Desiya Iyakkam president P Nedumaran said several Tamil organisations and political parties had joined the task of collecting food and medicines.

UNI