Senate – Already Discussed:

TNA won’t quit talks

by P. Krishnaswamy

The TNA will continue to hold talks with the Government delegation to reach consensus on an effective and workable solution to the grievances of people in the North and the East and would not quit the talks under any circumstances, leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Rasavarodhayam Sampanthan MP told the Sunday Observer.

They had reached an agreement with President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Government delegation and this has been recorded in the minutes of the talks with regard to the appointment of their representatives to the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC).

It was mutually agreed that the TNA would appoint its representatives to the PSC only after it reached consensus with the Government delegation on the basic aspects of power devolution. The TNA is scrupulously observing the mutual agreement and cannot be blamed for not appointing representatives to the PSC, he said.

The TNA held detailed discussions with Indian External Affairs Minister S.M.Krishna on January 16, the day prior to meeting President Rajapaksa, on their position with regard to power devolution, he said. The question of setting up a Senate as a component of the devolution package was discussed between them and the Government delegation on many occasions in the past.

The TNA had explained its stand. The TNA considered the Senate as complementary to an effective and meaningful devolution package and not as a component of it, Sampanthan said.

The TNA is not averse to participating in the PSC and would take part in the talks at the right time. They prefer the devolution package going through the process of deliberation at the PSC, the TNA leader said.