PMK appeals to Centre to get Lankan refugees free from camps

Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) founder Dr S Ramadoss today said India should take steps to ensure the "release" of internally displaced Sri Lankan Tamils lodged in refugee camps, and urged Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi to strongly take up the issue with the Centre.

"Indian government should take immediate steps for the release of Tamils from the camps. The chief minister should press the Centre to depute its emissaries to Colombo for this purpose. We are ready to join hands with him by burying the differences over the MPs' delegation to Sri Lanka if he strongly took up the matter with Centre," he said.

Ramadoss was referring to the absence of opposition MPs in a ten-member delegation comprising DMK, Congress and VCK members that left for Sri Lanka on Saturday to study the living conditions of the IDPs lodged in the camps.

Karunanidhi has been facing flak for omitting opposition MPs in the delegation headed by TR Baalu. The MPs visit was not a Centre-sponsored tour and they went on behalf of DMK, Congress and VCK, Karunanidhi had said.

Responding to Karunanidhi's remarks that other MPs were also free to approach the Centre seeking its nod to travel to Sri Lanka, Ramadoss said, "we are ready to take a delegation to Sri Lanka under CPI national secretary D Raja and meet president Mahinda Rajapakse. But will the government of India give permission and recommend our case to Sri Lanka? Or will Karunanidhi recommend it to the prime minister," he asked.