Almost all political parties in Tamil Nadu have welcomed, albeit with varying degrees of gusto, the common Opposition candidate Maitripala Sirisena trouncing Mahinda Rajapaksa in the Sri Lankan presidential election on Friday, but with an undertone of cautious optimism on securing the rights of the Tamils.
“For both the victor and the vanquished, it is time to reflect on who was responsible for all the past actions and hope they will at least now correct their ways,” DMK patriarch M. Karunanidhi said, soon after he was re-elected party president for a record 11th time here. The DMK’s demand for action against Mr. Rajapaksha for the “war crimes” in the last phase of the military action in 2009 very much stood, he said.
Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president E.V.K.S. Elangovan said the defeat of Mr. Rajapaksha dealt a blow to all those espousing the cause of ‘majoritarian’ politics. He hoped the new government would take steps for genuine devolution of powers to the Tamils.
An ecstatic MDMK leader Vaiko, speaking in Thanjavur, termed the day the “happiest” in his life with “every Tamil family celebrating the fall of Mr. Rajapaksa.” But he hoped Mr. Sirisena would not follow in Mr. Rajapaksa’s “footsteps of tyranny.”
TMC leader G.K. Vasan said it was a “victory for the entire Tamil-speaking people.” Those responsible for human rights violations against the Tamils should be brought to book. BJP State president Tamilisai Soundararajan said the result stood testimony to the fact that leaders responsible for “genocides” had never gone unpunished.
