Take steps to end attack on Tamils in Kerala: MK

CHENNAI: DMK president M Karunanidhi on Monday sought the immediate intervention of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the Mullaipeiryar dam issue to put an end to the attacks on Tamils in Kerala and to ensure compliance of the Supreme Court order 2006 by the Kerala government.The DMK chief accompanied by his party colleagues called on Prime Minister Manmohan who is here on a two-day visit, at the Raj Bhavan and submitted a memorandum on the dam issue. The meeting lasted for about 20 minutes. After listening to the DMK delegation, the Prime Minister said that the Central government would make all efforts to bring back normalcy in both States and consider the Central government deputing central forces at the Mullaiperiyar dam site.Giving a detailed account on the tense situation prevailing in the border areas of the State, the memorandum stated, “This situation, unless contained and changed immediately, will lead to permanent strain and cleavage between the people of the two States.”The memorandum said the continued campaign against the safety of the Mullaiperiyar dam by the Kerala government had resulted in many undesirable incidents, thus creating animosity between the people of the neighbouring States. Attacks on the pilgrims from visiting the Sabarimala temple and workers from Tamil Nadu employed in the estates situated along the inter-State border, harming Tamil students in Kerala, damaging the property of the Tamil people living Kerala and forcing them to flee were all incidents which had created ill-feelings in the minds of Tamil people.Instead of finding an amicable solution to this issue as people of two neighbouring States coexist in a federal set up in India, now a situation has been created by the Kerala government by its activities where the people of both states have been instigated to fight against each other like people of two different countries.The DMK leader pointed out that this issue was before the Supreme Court. Hence, any effort by Kerala  to reduce the storage level and construct a new dam at Mullaiperiyar had to be viewed as an attempt to subvert the judicial process and to deny justice to the people of TN.