Sri Lanka's High Commissioner, Kariyawasam, to India apologised on Friday after suggesting that any Tamil Nadu MPs who spoke of accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity had been lobbied by the LTTE and should be investigated by Indian authorities.
After being summoned for a meeting by India's ministry of external affairs with the ministry's joint secretary, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Kariyawasam 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,”
“I am very sorry about that. That’s not what I meant. I have a lot of respect for the parliamentarians. Some of them are good friends and what I would not assume that I would ask the Indian authorities to investigate parliamentarians. I cannot ask that and I would not."
When asked how India should vote on the resolution tabled at the 19th session of the UN Human Rights Council, Kariyawasam observed, "India is a responsible country".
The CPI (Communist Party of India) leader, D Raja, refused to accept the apology.
Raja said,
“The apology is not acceptable. On behalf of the CPI, the Government of India should ask the Sri Lankan Government to call back its High Commissioner working in Delhi,”
Kariyawasam's original comments were made in an interview which was published on Thursday.
“If they are sympathetic to the LTTE cause, the Indian authorities should investigate into the matter,”
