Samaraweera, who was Rajapaksa’s chief diplomat till 2007, told The Indian Express that the President had fooled the Indian leadership in 2006 and warned New Delhi to act with caution and refrain from giving unconditional support to Rajapaksa.

“Rajapaksa had told Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Hawaii that Sri Lanka was coming up with a proposal to extend devolution of powers to the north and east. The Government of India was particular that the north and east provinces remain amalgamated,” Samaraweera said. “In 2006, Rajapaksa and I attended Mani Shankar Aiyer’s son’s wedding... Dr Rohan Perera, who was the legal advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was also with us. He represented the committee of experts entrusted to frame a draft on the devolution of powers.”

Samaraweera said they had a meeting with Prime Minister Singh and made a presentation of the draft report. “Dr Singh was really impressed. The President made an assurance that it will be implemented. But as soon as we got back home, the report was leaked to the media, which triggered a massive hue and cry. I have sufficient proof that the President’s office leaked it as part of a premeditated plan to create a controversy. Then on the instance of Buddhist Sinhala chauvinist parties JHU and JVP he (Rajapakasha) disbanded the committee of experts and distanced himself from it. Both these parties are part of his Government”.

Samaraweera said he and Rajapaksa again went to New Delhi. “Prime minister Manmohan Singh was not happy. And he showed it in his own subtle way. When we went to meet Dr Singh, the cameras were not allowed...they didn’t even allow the media team accompanying us,” he recalled. “It was a clear indication that Dr Singh was not happy. But, now I don’t know why New Delhi is not asking questions. LTTE’s rout has given us an opportunity to initiate a political process, but left to the Sri Lankan Government, they will never do it.”

Samaraweera said that there is a talk that the people in IDP (Internally Displaced People) camps will be kept there for three years. “I have no doubt that India will soon have only one choice in Sri Lanka. After the disappearance of coercive LTTE from the centre stage of Tamil politics here, India would either have to support a demand for Eelam in north and east or support an authoritarian government in Colombo. There will be no middle ground—no takers for devolution plan of any sort in Colombo,” he said.

“This is why I wish New Delhi wakes up. We want Sri Lanka’s territorial integrity to remain, but there is a need to resolve the ethnic conflict through devolution of powers,” Samaraweera said. “I know President Rajapakasa. His political outlook is deeply rooted in Buddhist Sinhalese nationalism. He will never do anything more than the military campaign”.

He said that the LTTE’s objectives and the genuine aspirations of Sri Lankan Tamils are separate. “LTTE has been seriously weakened and no one is sorry about it. They are a brutal repressive force, which suppressed the rights of Tamil people and killed some of their best minds. Prabhakaran is a criminal. But a military victory is not the end of the story,” he said.

“There is a large constituency of Tamils in this country who do not subscribe to the LTTE view and are opposed to their repressive terrorist ways. Most of them want to live and die with us. But the success of this current military campaign is being turned into a Sinhalese victory against Tamils. I do not think this is the end of war...it is the beginning of a more dangerous divide in our country,” he said.