In the normal course, such an issue should have gone to the backburner since the Sri Lankan government had withdrawn the post within hours after it appeared in the wake wide-spread protests in Tamilnadu last week. Colombo also tendered an unqualified apology.
There are issues of concern to Tamilnadu vis-a-vis Sri Lanka. These concerns have been aggravated by the unchecked arrest of Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy. Since the Modi government came to office in New Delhi on May 26, Sri Lanka President Rajapaksa has been ordering the release soon after an arrest takes place.
While this goodwill gesture is appreciated, what rankles most the Tamilnadu politicians is the fact that the harassment of Indian fishermen continues unabated, often at an increased frequency.
While both sides agree that the fishermen issue is as much economic as humanitarian at its core, no sustained effort has yet been launched to find a solution that would not make fishing a nightmare off Ramesewaram and Dhnushkodi. The initiative for the exercise must come from Sri Lanka.
The author of the post "How meaningful are Jayalalithaa’s love letters to Narendra Modi" is said to be a Sri Lankan freelance journalist, Shenali. D. Waduge; she is known for her advocacy of Sinhalese-Buddhist nationalism and for pungent writings against Muslim and Tamil “separatism”.
While there can be no quarrel with
Shenali’s right to express her views freely, frankly and fearlessly, the fact that her outpouring of venom against Jayalalithaa and India has found a place on the website of a ministry under the care of the brother of the President of the Island nation has made eye brows to raise.It must, however, be said to the credit of the Sri Lanka government that it had shown quick reflexes once Chennai woke upto the post on Aug 1, and had put in the correctives – namely roll back of the post and an "unqualified" apology.
The apology read
"An article titled ‘How meaningful are Jayalalithaa’s love letters to Narendra Modi?’ had appeared on our website along with a graphical portrayal of Hon. Prime Minister of India and Hon Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.
"The article which had been published without appropriate authorization and not reflecting any official position of the Government of Sri Lanka or Ministry of Defence and Urban Development has since been removed.
"We extend an unqualified apology to the Hon Prime Minister of India and Hon Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu".
It is natural for law makers to articulate issues of public concern on the floor of Parliament. The controversial post on Sri Lanka MOD is one such issue.
So, when AIADMK leader V Maitreyan raised the issue in the Rajya Sabha, the External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj responded saying the issue raised by the member is "indeed very serious".
In the Lower House, parliamentary affairs minister M Venkaiah Naidu said, "While matters concerning diplomatic relations are dealt with delicately, this is totally unacceptable and condemnable. There is no hesitation in condemning it."
Both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha witnessed two adjournments each as AIADMK members stormed the well raising slogans denouncing the Sri Lankan president. They also made out a case for the House to adopt a "strong and unanimous resolution condemning Sri Lanka" so that such incident do not recur.
Maitreyan’s point was simple and straight. “The headline to the article was objectionable”; "the illustration that went along with the headline was derogatory". This is an insult of not only the Tamil Nadu government but also the Union government, he told parliament.
Jayalalithaa also made the same point when she said the visual rendering on the homepage of the official website just above the link is highly objectionable as it depicted both the Prime Minister of India and the chief minister of Tamil Nadu in a very trivialized, derogatory and disrespectful manner.
Maitreyan asked the External Affairs Minister whether the government would summon the Sri Lankan High Commissioner saying,
"We will definitely summon the high commissioner and tell him about it", Sushma Swaraj told the member.
—By Ram Singh Kalchuri
