Tiger chief pins hopes on India

Tiger chief pins hopes on India

Chennai, July 28: Five days after crowning himself the LTTE leader post-Prabhakaran, Selvarasa Pathmanathan alias KP expressed confidence that India would help Eelam Tamils achieve their aspirations for a separate homeland.

In an interview to this newspaper from an undisclosed location in Europe, he also said MDMK general secretary Vaiko and Sri Lankan Tamil Protection Movement convenor P. Nedumaran were unwilling to accept the fact that Prabhakaran was dead.

When asked about Mr Vaiko and Mr Nedumaran maintaining that Prabhakaran was still alive, he said, “They are unwilling to accept the truth. Our leader attained martyrdom along with other cadres in the last phase of war at Mullivaikkal.”

He said he tried to get the mortal remains of the slain LTTE chief. “However, our leader’s blood relatives did not come forward to receive his body,” he said.

KP said several countries in the world, including India, have expressed their concern to the Sri Lankan government about the sufferings of Eelam Tamils.

“At present, we have constituted a working committee that will explore the idea of forming a transnational Tamil Eelam government. The committee is drafting an action plan to achieve Tamil Eelam which has been the dream of our people for over half-a-century,” he said.

“India stood by the marginalised people in the past and helped them achieve liberation. Eelam Tamils across the globe believe that India will help them achieve liberation as it did in the past. India should understand us,” he said when asked about India’s role in the future of Lankan Tamils.

KP also expressed the confidence that the Sinhalese government would accept ethnic Tamils as their equals in due course.