Veeramani, Thirumavalavan agitate against PM's Lanka visit

Chennai, Dec 31 (UNI) Dravidar Kazhagam (DK) President K Veeramani and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) President Thol Thirumavalavan, both staunch supporters of Eelam Tamils, today staged a joint demonstration against the proposed visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Sri Lanka.

Dr Singh is scheduled to take part in Sri Lanka's Independence Day celebrations on January 4.

The agitation was to appeal to the Indian Government that neither the Prime Minister nor anyone on behalf of India should visit the island nation and attend its independence day celebrations.

Any such participation would only strengthen the hands of the Sri Lankan Government, which had launched an offensive against the Tamils, and spell doom for them, the two leaders said.

Expressing shock over the Prime Minister's reported visit, they said when the Tamils were treated as second class citizens and living as refugees in their own homeland, no Indian dignitary should take part in the event.

Mr Veeramani appealed to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi to prevail upon the Prime Minister to drop his plan of visiting the island.

He said after Mr Mahinda Rajapakse came to power in 2005, three lakh Tamils had become refugees and half of them were living as refugees in their own land. About 4,000 Tamils were killed and were denied for even medicines and food.

UNI