A debate across the Katchatheevu situation has bubbled up in Tamil Nadu’s and India’s politics simply forward of the Lok Sabha elections after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday lashed out on the Congress over the Indira Gandhi authorities handing over the disputed island to Sri Lanka in 1974. In an unique and exhaustive interview with CNN-News18 on Wednesday, union minister Hardeep Singh Puri, a former diplomat who was additionally posted in Sri Lanka, defined the historical past, context, and politics behind the controversy. Edited excerpts:
What’s your understanding of this situation of Katchatheevu?
Among the members within the opposition are saying why increase a 20-30-year-old situation. That is truly a 50-year-old situation…Lakshmi (spouse) and I served in Sri Lanka throughout an eventful section when former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had labored out the India-Sri Lanka settlement with President Jayewardene…I keep in mind this situation and I’ve performed some studying on it, as a result of the occasion pertains to 1974, and that was the 12 months I joined the Indian Overseas Service. So I recall at that time of time…of asking how, why, with whose approval. I believe we’ve forgotten about it…The problem boils down in my opinion to the character of decision-making 50 years in the past. You had the DMK in energy in Tamil Nadu and the Congress on the Centre…The social gathering in workplace in Tamil Nadu in 1974, level a; level b, 2024, the DMK is in energy in Tamil Nadu. The DMK issued its manifesto on twentieth of March…paragraph 27 says ‘reclamation of Katchatheevu’…Roughly 200km from Katchatheevu, the Kulasekarapattinam rocket launch web site is situated. Measures might be taken…to reclaim Katchatheevu to make sure India’s safety and defend the welfare of fishermen…Mainly, they wish to go into the elections due shortly with the plank of taking again Katchatheevu.
So the query arises, what was their angle in 1974? I’ll learn out to you two brief paragraphs from the report of discussions of the then international secretary Shri Kewal Singh with the then chief minister of Tamil Nadu Shri M Karunanidhi, whose son MK Stalin is at this time the chief minister…He says, on the substance of the proposal, the chief minister indicated that he was inclined to just accept the advised answer and we are going to come to the advised answer shortly. His issue was, nevertheless, that he couldn’t take the opposition into confidence with out sharing with them the information concerning the oil strike and convincing them about the necessity to settle for a compromise.
We aren’t going into whether or not the compromise is nice or unhealthy. That’s not the difficulty. He wished to know whether or not the Prime Minister had sounded the opposition. Overseas secretary mentioned that to his information, the proposal was recognized solely to 1 or two senior cupboard ministers and that in all probability Prime Minister wish to have the views of chief minister of Tamil Nadu earlier than discussing it with the opposite opposition leaders.
So, we now have a basic state of affairs right here. A civil servant who was a international secretary goes as emissary of the Prime Minister, the late Smt. Indira Gandhi ji, to Chennai, then Madras, and tells the chief minister, right here we now have a proposal that includes a compromise. I can go into the substance of it if you happen to like. The results of which is that the worldwide maritime boundary might be checked out in such a approach that the Katchatheevu island will fall into the Sri Lankan waters, primary.
Quantity two, now he says the chief minister having as soon as once more signified his common acceptance of the advised answer mentioned that for apparent political causes he couldn’t be anticipated to take a public stand in favour of it.
In 1974, you didn’t take a public stand on it. Right now you might be in your manifesto saying that you just wish to take it again. That is the brief level. They agreed to one thing that the central authorities led by the Congress social gathering by the late Shrimati Indira Gandhi advised to them, after which they go to para 15 to say one thing even higher. The chief minister, nevertheless, assured the international secretary that he would assist preserve the response low-key and wouldn’t enable it to be performed up. What does it imply? It means in essence that the DMK was a celebration to the choice. We aren’t going within the good or unhealthy of it, nevertheless it was a celebration to the choice. It collaborated with a central authorities in an effort to try to retain and subdue the general public response, which was going to come back. That is the crux of the purpose. And the central authorities performed alongside. That is simply Katachatheevu.
In 1956, the federal government of Ceylon headed by a Prime Minister referred to as SWRD Bandaranaike, handed the Sinhala Solely Act, the start line of all the issues of Tamils in Sri Lanka. There are two sorts of Tamils. The Plantation Tamils or Indian Tamils there, and the Jaffna Tamils. They began instantly…it affected their language…they grew to become second-class residents. However what occurred in India? When you had been such nice champions of Tamils, it is best to have performed one thing to pursue their curiosity. However Pandit ji, and I’m not blaming him, I’m merely saying that due to his lack of full understanding, he welcomed the Sinhala Solely Act. After we served in Colombo, and I’m speaking concerning the 12 months 1984 December to 1988, after I was there, I used to be a political counsellor, fairly often on the excessive commissioner’s residence, Shrimati Bandaranaike in response to questions requested by totally different Indian diplomats or the press…that was a time when Sri Lankan ethnic disaster, issues of Tamils was at a excessive. There have been Colombo riots in 1983. There have been different issues, when the LTTE started working and have become very massive, and different Tamil teams had been additionally there…and fairly often her reply could be, which can be recorded in books…She would say if this could occur in my time, I might name my sister, that being Indira ji, and inform her to look the opposite approach whereas I sorted out the issue.
All I’m saying is let’s not usher in subterfuge on this. No, we gave up this and that, we did this in 76, there have been fishing rights, and so on. This isn’t about fishing. However whether or not it helps you or not, we aren’t going into the substance of the dialogue, however we’re saying that there’s on the very least a misrepresentation of information right here as a result of the then DMK authorities chief actively collaborated with this resolution at hand over Katchatheevu.
This has come out on account of the RTI and I learn out to you the paragraph 15 and 16, which suggests then they had been saying one thing, and at this time they’re saying they need Katchatheevu again. Have they at this time acknowledged that they had been a celebration to this earlier than?
We’re stepping into the deliberate creation of a false narrative in an effort to mislead individuals, and I’ve my realized and lots of of my retired senior colleagues who are usually not even critical college students of historical past…
One of many explanations given, and would you agree…Mr Chidambaram is saying that the alternate of six lakh Indian Tamils occurred, in order that settlement got here by. The opposite half is the DMK says that sure, we could have agreed, however in precept, we had been promised by the Congress that the fishing rights won’t go away. The fishermen would proceed to have the ability to tread these waters.
Please inform DMK that you just work out your inner dynamics. What did you comply with in public? When did you hyperlink these two…produce the doc on what was supposed to come back. Then we will ask the query to the Congress. However you understand you possibly can’t make non-public offers on one thing like this. My query is in 74 after I was within the international service was merely this: my understanding of the Indian structure is that if you wish to do one thing on territory, you must search Parliament’s permission. Is that right or not? Now whose permission, if the then international secretary is saying that the prime minister has not even consulted multiple or two ministers and the chief in Tamil Nadu is saying that he can’t publicly take or carry the opposition in, so that they had been making an attempt to do one thing.
Now the extent…I’ve been round too lengthy, I’m too outdated…India is a robust nation and might defend itself. We’re merely speaking about what I believe is a extremely regrettable stage in our relationships with a South Asian nation the place no matter you probably did, proper or fallacious, I’m not even stepping into…2015 RTI replies…how does it say…this was not within the public area…Right now, it’s within the public area…We’re speaking right here concerning the restricted level concerning the Katchatheevu resolution.
However what does it do at this time? Why carry it up now? Sure, these paperwork have turn out to be public. The query being requested is has it been structured with a political intent as a result of twenty fifth of March or sixth of March he applies for it, inside six or seven days, the RTI is routinely answered. Why is that this being performed and what’s the purpose of this?
Tamil Nadu politics is one situation. If someone has obtained these information and desires to carry it out, that the person or a celebration can say. I’m personally welcoming the information popping out. Not less than now we will have a balanced and extra complete understanding of what occurred. Are we going any additional than this. All I’m saying is cease producing a false narrative. The person is reacting to paragraph 27 of the DMK manifesto issued as late as twentieth March. So when did he go on the RTI? Inform me that. Each time he went, twentieth March, they’ve put this in there of their manifesto.
The query of what we wish to do shouldn’t be related. You ask the DMK that you just wished to present it away again then, however now you wish to take it again. That’s a query that ought to be requested to them. They’re turning it round on the central authorities…the central authorities had nothing to do with this. This central authorities, the BJP authorities led by the honourable Prime Minister, has on numerous events bent over backwards to assist that nation. I’m related to the ministry petroleum and pure gasoline. Do you wish to know the way a lot we helped them throughout this power disaster? I can’t keep in mind, I believe $4 billion…Right here we’re doing this. It’s not as if we’re choosing on a small nation. We bailed them out when different issues weren’t falling into place. I don’t wish to go into the geopolitics, how a lot does the Chinese language affect performs the function? What occurred to Hambantota, the Colombo port, and so on?
It is a narrative correction. Tamil Nadu which is such an essential state. PM is likely one of the most energetic and powerful supporters of Tamil linguistic and cultural…You realize all this Tamil Sangam, Kashi, and Saurashtra…that may be a matter of pleasure. With Sri Lanka they want to have good relations, that’s one factor. What is that this false narrative that’s being launched right here and what was the motivation of this? Come on, personal up!
However the query is will this resonate on the bottom?
Whether or not it resonates on the bottom, someone has taken it up. I imply I’ve handled my Tamil mates each in Jaffna, Trincomalee, and Batticaloa in Sri Lanka and with them right here. These are very very proud individuals. Allow them to know the information.
So that you imagine that elevating the difficulty of Katchatheevu at this level solely exposes the hypocrisy of the DMK and the Congress?
Completely, I believe this dialogue is confined to that…
