The Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF) has called on India to use its leverage over Sri Lanka to secure a permanent political solution acceptable to the Eelam Tamil nation, stressing that the current moment presents an unprecedented opportunity that must not be wasted.
The remarks were made during a meeting between a TNPF delegation, led by party leader and Jaffna parliamentarian Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, and Indian MP Dr Thol. Thirumavalavan, who arrived in Jaffna to inaugurate the Karthigai Vaasam floral exhibition. Dr Thirumavalavan, leader of Tamil Nadu’s Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), is a key partner in the Tamil Nadu ruling coalition.
Speaking after the meeting, Ponnambalam said it had been thirty-nine years since the signing of the Indo–Sri Lanka Accord, yet successive governments in Colombo had failed to implement even the commitments they themselves agreed to. Instead, he said, the Sri Lankan state continued to rely on the narrow and inadequate framework of the 13th Amendment, insisting on a rigid unitary constitution that leaves no room for meaningful Tamil self-government.
This failure, he stressed, had kept Tamil politics trapped, unable to move beyond outdated structures that offer neither accountability nor genuine autonomy.
India’s leverage strengthened by Sri Lanka’s economic crisis
Ponnambalam told Dr Thirumavalavan that Sri Lanka’s deepening economic crisis had fundamentally altered regional dynamics. Sri Lanka, he said, could not rebuild its economy without India’s support, and political forces in the South that once campaigned against India were now compelled by financial necessity to align with New Delhi.
“As a result, India’s bargaining power in its dealings with Sri Lanka has strengthened,” he said, urging that this influence must be used in a constructive way to secure a durable solution for the Tamil people.
The TNPF leader emphasised that Eelam Tamils — who had endured a “structurally engineered genocide” — must seize the opportunity created by these shifting power relations. A decisive intervention from India, he said, is essential for breaking the political deadlock.
Tamil Nadu must take a firm stance
During the discussions, the TNPF delegation underscored the importance of Tamil Nadu’s role. They briefed Dr Thirumavalavan in detail on:
• the systemic obstacles within Sri Lanka’s constitutional framework
• the limitations of the 13th Amendment
• the legal and political barriers that prevent meaningful devolution
• the ongoing erosion of the Tamil homeland
They argued that Tamil Nadu’s long silence after the end of the armed struggle had contributed to a weakened political position for Eelam Tamils. Given Dr Thirumavalavan’s place within the Tamil Nadu ruling coalition, the delegation urged him to push for a more decisive and proactive stance from the state government.
His cooperation, they said, was essential to ensure that the Tamil Nadu government presses India to take stronger measures on the Tamil question.
‘The genocide continues in other forms’
Ponnambalam also warned that, although the armed struggle had been crushed, the genocide had not ended — it had merely transformed.
“While lives are no longer being taken, the existence of the Tamil people is being systematically erased,” he said.
He pointed to:
• the deliberate economic weakening of the Tamil homeland
• state-driven demographic changes
• the systematic undermining of Tamil cultural and political identity
He added that the Sri Lankan government’s rhetoric of “no Tamil, Sinhala or Muslim distinctions” concealed a policy framework that actively erases the Tamil presence while strengthening Sinhala control over the North-East.
A call for coordinated action
The TNPF delegation concluded by stressing that all political forces in Tamil Nadu must take forward constructive initiatives on the Tamil question. This should include coordinated efforts to ensure that India exerts pressure on Colombo to deliver a political settlement acceptable to the entire Tamil nation.
“This,” Ponnambalam said, “was the firm request we placed before Dr Thirumavalavan.”
