Strengthen ties with South India

Across the Palk Strait, invaded thrice weekly by poaching Southern Indian fishermen indulging in IUU practices as it were, is the Tamil Nadu State Assembly election scheduled for tomorrow.

It’s Hobson’s Choice for the 58 million voters – either they re-elect the AIADMK or bring back the DMK, basically two sides of the same coin. For once, Sri Lanka is not on the electoral agenda. Issues like Kachchativu and the arrest of fishermen by the Sri Lanka Navy are minor in comparison to other burning issues in the state. The Indian Prime Minister campaigning for his poorly placed BJP told a rally at Kanyakumari, a coastal town in Tamil Nadu home to many fishermen to engage in deep sea fishing (a reference possibly to avoid poaching in the Palk Strait) and that he is helping the Tamils in Sri Lanka wipe their tears by providing housing assistance – with the help of the Government of Sri Lanka. Striking a more conciliatory note than his predecessors did in the recent past, he said the new Government in Sri Lanka and the Central Government of India have a “good rapport”.

This approach may not win too many votes for the BJP in an election where the ultimate winner is the voter as all the political parties flood the electorate with gold, rice cookers and - part and parcel of Tamil Nadu elections. But at least it formed a good foundation for fruitful talks when the Sri Lankan President made a stop-over in New Delhi for a this week. With trade agreements, or without, Sri Lanka must engage the southern Indian states far more than now than relying on the West for its markets to bring home the dhal.