Pressure from leaders of political parties in Tamil Nadu did not sway Modi, who reached out to Sri lanka’s President
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took out a rabbit from his hat when he invited the SAARC leaders for his swearing-in ceremony on May 26, and took it forward by having a separate meeting with each of the leaders who had arrived to witness the spectacular event. No doubt he got kudos for this coup and has seized the initial advantage, but it is too early to speculate on his foreign policy initiatives.
While Mr Modi had been talking of economic issues and jobs during his campaign, not much was known about his foreign policy. The neighbouring countries were particularly watching closely what would be the new Government’s foreign policy initiatives. Therefore, Mr Modi’s invitation has sent a positive signal to all.
While the media has made it a Pakistan-focussed event, the other countries are no less important, particularly Bangladesh and Sri lanka. For instance, the meeting between Mr Modi and Sri lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Tuesday hardly got any attention in the media, except perhaps in Tamil Nadu.
The Modi-Rajapaksa meeting was significant in the backdrop of the opposition from Tamil Nadu’s leaders, including the allies — the PMK, the MDMK and the DMDK — as well as the ruling AIADMK and the Opposition DMK. They are critical of Mr Modi inviting Mr Rajapaksa, ignoring the sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu. They allege that Mr Rajapaksa should be tried for human rights violation and the ‘genocide’ during the 2009 Eelam war in the island country.
If the Tamil political parties expected that Mr Modi would behave in the same way his predecessor Manmohan Singh did on India-Sri lanka relations, they were disappointed. Mr Singh, bowing to the political pressure from Tamil Nadu, even cancelled his visit to Colombo for the Commonwealth meeting hosted by Sri lanka last year. Mr Modi, on his part, seems to be sending a signal that he wants to have good relations with all the neighbours including Sri lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh. In effect, he sent a signal that foreign policy is the domain of the Centre and he will not be a hostage to the State leaders. This is pertinent when Chief Ministers like J Jayalalithaa and Mamata Banerjee want a say in the foreign policy.
This is a new turn in Tamil Nadu politics, which has been intertwined with the Sri lankan Tamil issue for decades. In fact Prime Ministers like Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi used the services of the then Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, MG Ramachandran, in dealing with Tamil militant groups like the lTTE. The DMK pushed for the withdrawal of the IPKF from the island country in 1989 when it was a partner in the National Front Government led by VP Singh. For over three decades, the matter has remained a issue in the Assembly as well as in the lok Sabha elections.
Although elected with a huge mandate, the Northern Province Chief Minister in Sri lanka, Mr CV Wigneswaran complains he is not even able to get a Chief Secretary of his choice, while President Rajapaksa is still unwilling to give them the two important powers — police and land. The irony is that the Sri lankan Tamils do not want the interference of Tamil Nadu’s political parties since they feel that these parties are following their own political agenda and not that of the Sri lankan Tamils. Mr Wigneswaran has gone on record in this regard. The Mayor of Jaffna, Yogeshwari Pathkunarajah, who accompanied Mr Rajapaksa to the swearing-in ceremony this week articulated the view.
Had Mr Wignseswaran accompanied Mr Rajapaksa, accepting his invitation to join his delegation to India, Tamil Nadu’s parties might have had a red face. Mr Modi made it clear to Mr Rajapaksa that he would like the Sri lankan Government to address two key issues — rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Tamil population and implementation of the 13th Amendment. Mr Modi pitched for an early reconciliation process to meet the aspirations of the Tamil community in Sri lanka. This should send a positive signal to leaders of Tamil Nadu.
While the beginning has been good with the first meeting, the effect will be visible in the coming months. Will Mr Rajapaksa move forward and deliverIJ