Sri Lanka has lashed out at Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa for her “wild allegations” against the island nation in a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this week.
“We hope Prime Minister Modi will stand by the right side [Sri Lanka’s side],” Cabinet spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said here on Thursday.
Rejecting the allegations made by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister of a “pogrom and genocide” against ethnic Tamils during the final stages of separatist war, he said: “It is very much in keeping with the character of this politician to make wild allegations against Sri Lanka.”
Devolution risky
In another development, the Sri Lankan government has told India that it would be risky for it to devolve police powers as per the 13th Amendment to its Constitution, which followed the Indo-Lanka Accord of 1987.
Making evident its position on devolution of certain powers to its provincial councils, Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris made a statement in the Sri Lankan Parliament on Wednesday, while responding to Opposition Leader Ranil Wickramasinghe. According to the State-run Daily News , the Minister told the Parliament that President Rajapaksa had clearly expressed the view that devolution of police powers to the provincial councils would result in “undesirable repercussions.”
Minister Peiris’ remarks come barely two weeks after Prime Minister Modi urged President Rajapaksa — at the bilateral meeting held in New Delhi after Mr Modi’s swearing-in — to deliver on his promises to devolve wide powers to the provincial councils, including those with a majority of Tamils.
