Lankan Tamil issue rocks Parliament again

New Delhi, Feb 19 (ANI): The plight of Tamils in Sri Lanka rocked proceeding in the Lok Sabha, for the second consecutive day on Thursday, with Speaker Somnath Chatterjee adjourning the House due to pandemonium.

Several lawmakers of various political parties marched to the Well of the House shouting slogans on Lankan issue.

On Wednesday, the house was adjourned External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) had done more harm to ethnic Sri Lankan Tamils and urged it to surrender their weapons.

Mukherjee also said that there is political opportunity to restore normalcy in the northern parts of the island nation and India is ready to facilitate the evacuation of civilians trapped in Sri Lanka.

Last month, Mukherjee met Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and discussed safety measures for Tamils trapped in the battle zone.

The visit was also aimed at cooling tensions with Tamil Nadu politicians who are demanding that India broker a ceasefire and save Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka's military has encircled the rebel Tigers and is confident it will win a war that has claimed 70,000 lives since 1983. (ANI)