Indian PM to consider all factors before deciding to attend CHOGM

Wednesday, 16 October 2013 00:22 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

India’s Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has said that he would decide on whether to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Colombo next month only after considering all relevant factors, including sentiments of Tamil people.

Indian PM has said this in a letter to M. Karunanidhi the leader of the Dravida Munnethra Kaagam (DMK), a Tamil political party in Tamil Nadu. “I wish to inform you that a decision on the issue of my participation in the CHOGM conference will be taken only after considering all relevant factors, including the sentiments of your party and the Tamil people,” Indian media quoted Dr. Singh as saying in his letter to the DMK chief. The PM’s statement comes after he was informed of the deteriorating health of a pro-Tamil activist K. Thiagarajan, who is on an indefinite fast in Chennai since 1 October demanding that India boycott the CHOGM. PM in his letter asked the DMK chief to persuade the activist to call off his fast. The Indian Prime Minister is under immense pressure from the pro-Eelam political parties in Tamil Nadu to boycott the Commonwealth Summit in Sri Lanka on the issues of alleged attacks on Indian fishermen and resettlement of Sri Lankan Tamils. The DMK has demanded that India must not attend the summit in Sri Lanka and assured that if the Central Government fails to heed their demand they will stage state-wide protests.