LTTE should lay down arms & help end the ethnic problem: Chidambaram


New Delhi, Feb 16Home Minister Mr. P. Chidambaram has again said, LTTE should declare its willingness to lay down arms and come to the negotiating table to end the ethnic problem embroiling Sri Lanka. He was addressing a public meeting organized by the Congress party in Tamil Nadu to explain its stand on the Sri Lanka issue in Chennai Sunday evening. LTTE's willingness will pave the way for the Indian government to impress upon the island government to declare a ceasefire, he said.

Coming down heavily on the LTTE, Mr Chidambaram said, he said, no government will have a dialogue with an outfit which refuses to give up arms. He said that a permanent solution to the vexed issue could be arrived at on the basis of the 1987 Indo- Sri Lanka accord. The Home Minister said, out of four million Tamil people who are spread throughout Sri Lanka, and only 1. 3 million Tamils reside in the north part and so LTTE's claim of being as sole representative of the entire Tamil community cannot be accepted.

Meanwhile, the ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) sweeping victory in the recently concluded provincial polls is being seen by political observers as an endorsement of government's military victories over the LTTE.

In a statement president Mahinda Rajpaksa said that this election 'defeated all foreign and local elements which belittled the victorious march of the heroic soldiers' and will strengthen the resolve of the armed forces to launch the final assault.

The UPFA came to power three years back and since 2006 has been consistently fighting the Tamil Tiger rebels in the North. The recent political victory will put fresh impetus to the military efforts which is on the verge of defeating the 25 year old separatist movement.