Sri Lankan Tamil issue: 13th constitutional amendment should be implemented, says Naidu

Union Minister of Urban Development, Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Parliamentary Affairs M. Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday reiterated India's stand on Sri Lankan Tamil issue, saying that the Government is pressing Sri Lanka to implement the 13th amendment on devolution of powers to fulfill the aspirations of the ethnic Tamils.

"The Sri Lankan Tamil issue has been taken up by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the visit of Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to Delhi. India's stand has been right from day one that, the 13th constitutional amendment, which was promised earlier should be implemented in true spirit and, secondly, the devolution of powers should reach all the people and every section of Sri Lanka should feel that they are part of the system and they are all given respect," Naidu told media here.

"On Sri Lankan Government's action on LTTE, there is a need for credible inquiry. When the matter is taken up in Geneva, appropriate response will be given by the government at an appropriate time. India being a neighbour, we need to maintain good relations with all the countries including Sri Lanka," he added.

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe during his recent visit to New Delhi had said that his government was looking at devolution of power to ethnic Tamils under the provisions of the Constitution, an issue India has been pursuing with the island nation.

"We are looking at how power sharing takes place within the Constitution," Wickremesinghe had said.

India has been pressing Sri Lanka to implement the 13th amendment on devolution of powers to fulfill the aspirations of the ethnic Tamils.