TN CM Stalin urges PM Modi to ensure Tamils' rights are enshrined in Sri Lanka's new Constitution

Chennai, Jan 11 (PTI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to impress upon Sri Lanka to make sure that principles such as equality and devolution of power for the minority Tamil people are enshrined in the new Constitution of the island nation.

Writing to PM Modi, the chief minister said that the current government in Sri Lanka, led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is accelerating efforts to introduce a new constitution "under the guise of resolving ethnic issues." However, this proposed framework appears to again reinforce a unitary “Ekkiyarajya” (unitary state) model, which threatens to further marginalise the Tamils by ignoring their legitimate aspirations for political autonomy.

Recently, Stalin said he has received detailed representations highlighting the grave risks posed to the Sri Lankan Tamil community by the ongoing constitutional reforms in Sri Lanka.

The CM said: "The State of Tamil Nadu has been in the forefront of upholding the rights and aspirations of the Tamils in Sri Lanka due to deep historical, cultural, and emotional ties. As the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, it is my bounden duty to bring the issue regarding the proposed new constitution of Sri Lanka to your kind attention drawing from representations from respected Tamil leaders from India and Sri Lanka." In this context, the representations emphasize the enduring relevance of the Thimpu Principles, articulated by Tamil representatives during the 1985 peace talks facilitated by the Government of India in Bhutan. These principles call for recognition of the Tamils of Sri Lanka and acknowledgment of the Northern and Eastern Provinces as the traditional homeland of the Tamil people.

Affirmation of the right to self-determination for the Tamils and establishment of a federal system of governance that ensures equality and non-discrimination for all citizens, including full citizenship rights for hill-country Tamils.

"Without incorporating these elements, any new constitution risks perpetuating the cycle of injustice and instability, potentially leading to renewed conflict and humanitarian crises. India, as a regional power with a longstanding commitment to peace and justice in Sri Lanka—evidenced by our historical involvement, including the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord of 1987—has a moral and strategic imperative to act. The plight of Sri Lankan Tamils resonates deeply in Tamil Nadu, where millions view them as kin, and any deterioration in their situation could have broader implications for bilateral relations and regional stability," the chief minister underlined.

Further, the CM urged the Government of India to "engage diplomatically with the Sri Lankan authorities at the highest level to advocate for a constitutional process that genuinely addresses Tamil grievances." Specifically, India should press for the inclusion of federal arrangements that devolve power to the provinces, protect ethnic minority rights, and uphold the principles of pluralism and equality.

Such an approach would not only honour India’s role as a guarantor of regional peace but also align with our constitutional values of federalism and protection of linguistic and ethnic minorities.

The Sri Lankan Tamils have endured for over 77 years systematic discrimination, violence, and attempts to curb their genuine rights culminating in what many describe as a genocide against their community.

The post-independence Constitutions of Sri Lanka—those of 1947, 1972, and 1978—have all been rooted in a unitary state structure, which has enabled planned ethnic violence, structural oppression, and denial of basic rights to the Tamil people.

For the past 16 years since the end of the civil war, this unitary framework has continued to enable demographic changes, land grabs, and erosion of Tamil identity in their traditional homelands. PTI VGN VGN KH