Basil Rajapakse fails to reply TNA allegations

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 June 2010, 14:47 GMT]
Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapakse has failed to respond to questions raised by Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians at the Batticaloa District Development Council (DDC) meeting held on Monday at Batticaloa District Secretariat over the resettlement of displaced Tamil families and settling Sinhalese from the south in traditional Tamil villages in the district under the pretext of resettlement.

TNA parliamentarians did not attend such meeting in past due to the threat by government Para military groups led Karuna and Pillayan after 2004 general election.

TNA parliamentarians elected in the April 8 general election attended the DDC meeting for the first time after three years, sources said.

Arumugan Thondaman, Animal Husbandry Development Minister, Muthu Sivalingam, Deputy Minister for Economic development, Felix Perera, Social Services Minister and Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan, Deputy Minister for Resettlement and Rehabilitation also attended the meeting.

Deputy Minister M.L.A.M.Hisbullah and Eastern Provincial Council Chief Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan joint Chairmen of the DDC presided. TNA parliamentarians P.Selvarajah, C.Yogeswaran and P.Ariyanethran attended.