CHENNAI: Chief Minister MK Stalin has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling for urgent diplomatic engagement with Sri Lanka over its proposed constitutional reforms, warning that they could undermine the political rights and security of the island's Tamil community.
In a letter sent on Sunday, Stalin said the ongoing constitutional changes being pursued by the Sri Lankan government posed grave risks to Tamils who have already endured decades of discrimination and violence. He urged New Delhi to step in at the highest level to ensure that any new constitutional framework genuinely addresses Tamil grievances.
CM Stalin told the Prime Minister that Tamil Nadu, because of its deep historical, cultural and emotional ties with Sri Lankan Tamils, had a duty to speak out when their rights were at stake. He said he was acting on representations received from Tamil leaders in both India and Sri Lanka.
Expressing concern over President Anura Kumara Dissanayake's move to push through a new Constitution, Stalin cautioned that the proposals appeared to reinforce a unitary 'Ekkiyarajya' model, which could further marginalise Tamils and weaken their demand for political autonomy.
He urged India to press Colombo to adhere to the Thimpu Principles of 1985, including recognition of Sri Lankan Tamils as a distinct nation, acknowledgement of the Northern and Eastern Provinces as their traditional homeland, and the establishment of a federal system that ensures equality and non-discrimination.
"Without these elements, any new Constitution risks perpetuating injustice and instability," Stalin warned, adding that India had both a moral and strategic obligation, rooted in the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka Accord, to safeguard peace and justice in the island nation.