Lankan daily: PM’s Colombo visit off

CHENNAI, JANUARY 6: Even as several pro-LTTE groups in Tamil Nadu staged demonstrations against Manmohan Singh’s reported visit to participate in the February 4 celebrations of Sri Lanka’s 60th Independence anniversary, Island, an English daily from Colombo, quoting diplomatic sources said the Indian Prime Minister would not be going to Colombo after all.

While the PMO has maintained silence on the issue, there has been hectic speculation in the Lankan media and aggressive posturing by political groups, including DMK allies, on Singh’s ‘reported’ visit.

Today, the Island said the Colombo foreign office had been told that Singh will not be taking part in the February 4 anniversary function. Scheduling difficulties and Singh’s ‘indifferent health at present’ were attributed to his inability to make it for the celebrations.

However, the report said the ‘bad news’ had been interpreted in well informed diplomatic circles as “partly due to umbrage that Sri Lanka had announced a visit without confirmation from New Delhi as well as unhappiness about foot-dragging on the presentation of political proposals for the resolution of the national question”. The report hints India was ‘dismayed’ by the Sri Lankan Government’s decision last week to withdraw from the ceasefire agreement with the LTTE.

The PMO has not reacted so far either to Colombo’s statements on Singh’s ‘visit’ or to urgings by several Tamil Nadu politicians that he keep away from Colombo.

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