India-Lanka ties: MEA can rise above Tamil sideshow

The fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi ignores the demands, protests and viewpoints of Tamil political parties in the matter of dealing with Sri Lanka has not deterred these forces from persisting with the tamasha.

One outcome — to the Union Government’s advantage — of such competitive posturing is that these Tamil sideshows have no influence on New Delhi’s handling of ties with Colombo, the Sri Lankan Tamils issue and the Tamil Nadu fishermen’s problem. Secondly, the posturing exposes how parties in Tamil Nadu, such as the DMK, are using the anti-Sri Lanka platform to showcase their interest in cosying up to the BJP. Every Tamil party — though critical of the India’s policy, approach and dealings with Sri Lanka — projects itself as a superior champion of the cause of both Sri Lankan Tamils and Tamil Nadu fishermen. All these parties are competing against one another to convince the BJP that they would not play an adversarial role.

Thus, speaking at a protest rally of the Tamil Eelam Supporters Organisation (TESO) in Chennai on September 4, DMK chief M Karunanidhi was at pains to impress that he was confident of Modi finding a solution to the Sri Lankan Tamils issue. Reposing faith in Modi, Karunanidhi, who is chairman of TESO, said he was echoing what everyone felt in saying that this Prime Minister would do what his predecessors had not done. “We also have the same faith”, he said.

With AIADMK Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa determined to be non-confrontational in her relationship with the Centre and Modi, the other parties, especially the DMK, are constrained to follow suit for staying on the right side of the BJP. The BJP’s allies, such as the DMDK, PMK and MDMK do sulk and whine, at times, about the BJP getting closer to the AIADMK. But they are doing everything to make it known that they will not break the alliance — at least for now — lest the AIADMK and DMK take advantage of the opening thus provided. Such a situation means that unlike the UPA — which let the DMK and Tamil parties dictate the terms of India’s engagement with Sri Lanka on a range of issues — the BJP-led NDA government enjoys a free hand right now to do as it thinks best; and, willy-nilly, all the Tamil parties would end up supporting — or, at least, not openly opposing — whatever Modi sarkar does. Therefore, this is the most opportune time for the Union Government to formulate and articulate a Sri Lanka policy free of ambiguities; and, free from the compulsions of regional parties and coalition politics of which the UPA was a victim.

The UPA’s second term was bereft of a Sri Lanka policy. Manmohan Singh dithering and skipping the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Sri Lanka, the flip-flops over the UNHRC resolutions and the Congress appeasing Tamil parties for electoral gains left an ineffective Union Government open to avoidable ridicule. New Delhi lost what little influence it had over President Mahinda Rajapaksa and India’s image and standing in the region took a beating which was exploited shrewdly by China and Pakistan. At the present juncture, the Centre is well placed to assert that national interest — not regional sentiments — would determine India’s relationship with Sri Lanka. It is also an opportune moment for New Delhi to clarify whether Sri Lanka should be treated as an “enemy country” and isolated and pilloried in every international forum — as demanded by some Tamil parties — and whether this really serves the interests of India and India-Sri Lanka relations.

The author is an independent political and foreign affairs commentator