‘Misquoted’ Sri Lankan envoy apologises to Indian MPs

The government Thursday summoned Sri Lanka’s envoy to India for a meeting during which he apologized to Indian MPs for his comments that sought to link those questioning Colombo’s human rights record with the Tamil Tigers.

Harshvardhan Shringla, joint secretary in charge of Sri Lanka in the external affairs ministry, met Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner Prasad Kariyawasam and conveyed New Delhi’s objections to the diplomat’s comments about Indian MPs, official sources said.

“I would like to apologise to MPs of Tamil Nadu if I have caused any discontent or concern or distress in their minds. I feel sorry about that,” Kariyawasam told reporters here after the meeeting.

The diplomat was earlier quoted by an Indian newspaper as saying that New Delhi should investigate Indian MPs sympathetic to the Tamil cause.

“That is not what I meant,” Kariyawasam clarified, adding: “What I meant say was the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) lobby groups abroad and in this region carrying on a campaign of disinformation (against Sri Lanka).”

This, he added, was aimed at disrupting the process of reconciliation in Sri Lanka following the end of the long-drawn war in 2009.

He said when he referred to “investigation”, he meant the Tamil lobby groups abroad, not Indian MPs.

Kariyawasam said the Indian foreign ministry official who met him “expressed very clearly the concerns of the Indian government” over his reported remarks.

Asked what stand he expected India to take at the Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva on the US-sponsored resolution on “war crimes” in Sri Lanka, the envoy was cautious: “India is a responsible country.”

With Tamil Nadu parties asking the government to back the resolution, India is treading cautiously on this sensitive issue and has made it clear that it will weigh in sentiments in parliament before deciding its stand. New Delhi has stressed the need for “a forward looking outcome” that avoids “mistrust and confrontation.”

“We are engaged with all parties in an effort to achieve a forward looking outcome that is based on reconciliation and accountability rather than deepening confrontation and mistrust between the concerned parties,” External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna Wednesday said while commenting on the draft resolution on Sri Lanka in the UN Human Rights Council.