Jaya rejects Congress criticism of her demand for Tamil Eelam

Reacting to Congress spokesperson Kapil Sibal’s remarks that her separate Ealam demand amounted to an ‘anti-national’ act,Jayalalithaa said she has not “condoned the terrorism of militant outfits in the guise of a freedom struggle or repressive,multi-polar violence or genocide unleashed by a government affecting large segments of civilian population.” “Those who are not confined in the badly equipped government camps are caught in the direct crossfire between the Sri Lankan armed forces and the LTTE,” she said.

Jayalalithaa said that she had sought cessation of hostilities,and demarcation of Tamil-dominated territory and devolution of powers within Sri Lanka’s constitutional framework. Colombo was “not prepared” to implement any of these processes and “chosen to dismiss similar calls from UN,US and US and most countries barring China,” she said adding “the only way out is to carve out a separate Tamil Eelam.”

“How such a demand,at this stage when millions of innocent lives are affected,could be (termed) anti-national? Which Indian law have I broken?” she asked.