Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Wednesday strongly criticised Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa for ruling out greater political autonomy for Tamils, saying India should at least "wake up" now and help secure their livelihood and democratic rights.
The Sri Lankan government has asserted that the recently signed maritime security pacts with India will "neither result in hindrance nor threat" to the island nation's security as "misinterpreted" by several media outlets in this country.
The protesters left the main anti-government protest camp at Galle Face promenade where they had been staging sit-ins since April 9, branding it as the 'Gota go home village' (Rajapaksa go home).
Mahinda Rajapaksa recovered from his 2015 electoral losses, went to the people and campaigned about the injustice done to him. Without attempting to be subtle, he underscored his image of the Sinhala Buddhist warrior a la Dutugemunu, the king of Sri Lanka (164 BC to 140 BC) who led the military campaign against the invading warlord Elara.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday dismissed reports about his government flouting agreements reached in the 1987 Indo-Lanka Accord which created devolved administrative units, saying there had been no violations.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Sunday sacked the country's first woman Chief Justice Shirani Bandarnayake after ratifying her impeachment by Parliament which held her guilty of corruption, notwithstanding widespread protests by lawyers and others.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa's scheduled speech on Wednesday at the Commonwealth Economic Forum was cancelled, amid concerns about possible demonstrations by Tamil groups protesting against human rights violations in his country.
Pakistan on Thursday hailed Sri Lanka's efforts in tackling terrorism, saying there was a "marked difference" in the country in its post-conflict phase of development. Jalil Abaas Jilani, visiting Pakistani foreign secretary, made the comments during his meeting with President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Thursday morning.
Joins Rajapaksa's newly-formed Sri Lanka People's Party
Sri Lanka has described the adoption of its periodic review of human rights at Geneva's United Nations Human Rights Commission sessions without a division as a victory and an acknowledgment of its rights progress.
A 41-year-old man from Cuddalore district died after self-immolation while several pro-Tamil outfits tried to picket the Lankan deputy high commission in Chennai demanding action against the Rajapaksa government for alleged war crimes.
It may not be desirable in the 21st century, in the context of the emergence of human rights as a powerful emotive factor and of India's rise as an important player on the regional and global scene, to place self-imposed restrictions on the way we deem fit to vote on human rights resolutions, says Satish Chandra
Gota has to decide if he could order elder brother Mahinda's arrest as the agent provocateur of Monday's violence. Then he has to prepare for an interim government, in which no one would now want to become a cabinet minister leave alone prime minister, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief Vaiko and his supporters were on Friday detained when they tried to march towards the prime minister's residence in protest against the visit of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to the country. Vaiko and scores of his supporters have been protesting at Jantar Mantar in Delhi since morning, demanding that India close down the Sri Lankan High Commission in the capital.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi on Friday led a state-wide protest against the visit of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to India, accusing him of making efforts to 'annihilate' the Tamils in the island republic.
Global rights group Human Rights Watch has asked the Commonwealth to shift its meeting, scheduled for November, out of Sri Lanka, unless Colombo makes "prompt, measurable, and meaningful progress on human rights".
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has ruled out greater political autonomy for Tamils, saying ethnicity-based division was 'not practical' for the country, appearing to back away from his promise made as part of the country's reconciliation process.
Rajapaksa sworn in new Chief Justice Mohan Peiris to replace Sri Lanka's first woman chief justice who was impeached by the parliament in a controversial move.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa arrived in Beijing on Monday on a 4-day state visit, his sixth, with Colombo saying that its ties with Beijing were not an "exclusive one" and would not harm interests of others.
Menon, who arrived in Colombo by a special flight just after midnight on Thursday night, is scheduled to meet President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his younger brothers Basil Rajapaksa, Minister of Economic development; and Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Defence Secretary, officials said.
Notwithstanding stiff opposition from political parties in Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka on Wednesday asserted that it was 'very firm' on continuing the training programme of its defence personnel in India and ruled out sending them to countries such as China.
India on Sunday said it stands with the Sri Lankan people in their aspirations for prosperity and progress through democratic means, established institutions and constitutional framework.
Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam General Secretary Vaiko was on Friday detained by the police when he tried to move further from Gadchicholi to Sanchi to protest Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa's visit.
Despite heavy police security, a group of Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supporters sneaked into Bhopal through rail and air routes on Tuesday night to protest the visit of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is arriving in the state capital, police said.
Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam general secretary Vaiko on Wednesday criticised the Centre as well as Bharatiya Janata Party-led Madhya Pradesh government for inviting Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to a function in Sanchi near Bhopal.
Developmental works being undertaken by India in war-torn northern Sri Lanka and the current political situation came up for discussion when Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar met President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo on Friday. Kumar is in Colombo to attend the 58th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. She met Rajapaksa at his official residence and discussed a host of issues that concern the relationship between the two countries.
The Communist Party of India Marxist-Leninist will oppose Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa's visit to Bodh Gaya in Bihar on February 8, protesting against the 'Tamil genocide' in his country.
Thousands of student activists from the Inter University Students Federation blocked the main access road to the parliamentary complex since Thursday and carried on protests for almost 24 hours.
Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy met Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo and requested him to mobilise other Tamil parties in the northern province besides the dominant Tamil National Alliance to achieve political reconciliation.
National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon arrived in Colombo on Monday to hold crucial talks on the controversial 13th amendment on devolution of power in the Tamil-dominated northern province and a trilateral maritime security treaty with Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa's secretary Lalith Weeratunga, who heads the task force, said out of the 135 main recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission, there are 33 that need to be implemented at the national level. While some will be implemented within this year the others may take as long as next year, he said
A day after Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa was forced to cancel his speech here in the face of protests by Tamil groups, the Commonwealth on Thursday said it had offered support to the country to promote reconciliation in the trouble-torn country.
Sri Lanka enjoys good bilateral relations with India despite the anti-Lanka protests in Tamil Nadu, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said on Monday. Replying to a question on the simmering tension in Tamil Nadu vis a vis Sri Lanka, Rajapaksa said that he would welcome the politicians from the state to visit the island nation and witness its progress.
While Sri Lanka's state media chose to ignore Sarath Fonseka's release from prison, pro-government newspapers said on Tuesday that the former army chief had become a "political pawn" in the hands of foreign countries against President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
In an interview with rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa, Colonel Hariharan talks about how Jayalalithaa is using anti-Lanka protests for political mileage and why the Rajapaksa government should immediately address the grievances of the nation's Tamil population
Laying the foundation stone of a Buddhist University in Sanchi, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday said tolerance is of "equal importance" to both East and West, as enmity and hatred lead to violence and destruction.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa is expected to meet President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his private visit to the country next week, against the backdrop of attacks on pilgrims from this country in Tamil Nadu.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa will visit India later this month, primarily to lay the foundation stone of a Centre for Buddhist Studies in Madhya Pradesh's Sanchi, home to some of the vital and finest Buddhist monuments.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday left for a two-day visit to India during which he will offer prayers at Bodh Gaya and Tirupathi. He would visit Bodh Gaya and Tirupathi and the visit was of a personal nature, presidential officials said.
The Sri Lankan parliament on Friday voted by a majority to impeach the chief Justice which could eventually lead to her removal from office.
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