Manmohan to host lunch for Rajapaksa; Tamil issue on agenda

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa stand for the National Anthem during the Commonwealth Games closing ceremony in New Delhi on Thursday. Singh will hold a luncheon meeting with Rajapaksa on Friday.

India is expected to seek an update from Sri Lanka on the steps on resettlement of Tamil civilians when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh meets visiting President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday.

Mr. Rajapaksa arrived here on Thursday afternoon to witness the closing ceremony of the 19th Commonwealth Games here.

Dr. Singh will hold a luncheon meeting with Mr. Rajapaksa which will be attended by Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris and Foreign Secretary C.R. Jayasinghe.

Mr. Peiris, who is on a four-day visit to India, met External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna in New Delhi on Thursday and is understood to have briefed him on the steps taken by the Sri Lankan government to resettle around 3,00,000 Tamil civilians displaced in the war against the LTTE.

Mr. Krishna is understood to have stressed on expediting the political settlement involving devolution of powers to minority communities.