FM lauds TNA for securing resounding mandate in polls

Lauding Sri Lanka's main Tamil party, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), for securing a "resounding mandate" in elections for the Northern province, Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram today expressed confidence that it would secure maximum autonomy for provinces and equal rights for Tamils among others.
"This is a resounding mandate in favour of TNA and gives TNA a splendid opportunity to work for a permanent solution based on the 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution and improving upon the same," he said in a statement here.
He said he was confident that TNA would be able to secure "maximum autonomy for the province, devolution of powers to provinces (as envisaged in the 13th Amendment), equal rights and respect for Tamils and other minorities, acknowledgement of traditional rights of Tamils to their homeland and adequate participation in the governance of the country."

"The victory of TNA is also vindication of the policy adopted by Congress party and the Central government," he said without elaborating.
He congratulated TNA leaders, including R Sampanthan and Chief Minister-elect C V Wigneswaran and wished them success.
TNA had won 30 out of the 38 seats in the provincial council polls.