Sri Lankan MPs meet Karunanidhi

The Sri Lankan government has not taken steps to bring about a political solution to the Tamil ethnic problem, a Tamil MP from the island country said today.

The Sri Lankan government has not taken steps to bring about a political solution to the Tamil ethnic problem, a Tamil MP from island country said on Tuesday.

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Speaking after meeting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi , MP R Sambandan said, "Sri Lanka has not taken any concrete steps towards implementing a political solution for the Tamil problem. The government has not taken any dialogue with us for achieving a political solution."

A delegation of five MPs of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) met Karunanidhi at his residence and urged him and the Indian government to help find a solution for the Tamil problem.

According to Sambandan, around 100,000 Tamils had not been allowed to go back to their native places since the end of the war last year. "The pace of building houses for Tamils is slow," he said.

Queried about Karunanidhi's idea of sending an Indian envoy to Sri Lanka, Sambandan said, "It is a good idea. Even during (prime minister) Indira Gandhi's period, Karunanidhi had mooted such an idea."

The TNA was once vocally supportive of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which was decimated by the Sri Lankan military in May 2009.