No LTTE base in Tamil Nadu: Indian PM's office

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 March 2008, 17:52 GMT]
Virtually bending over backwards the Indian Prime Minister's office Tuesday 'clarified' that National Security Advisor M. K. Narayanan had never mentioned about the existence of LTTE bases in Tamil Nadu. On a temple visit to Kerala Sunday, Narayanan was widely quoted by Indian media reports as saying that Tamil Nadu and Kerala have been asked to "monitor the activities" of LTTE sympathisers since "Indian intelligence agencies" had come to know that both the states had "small pockets of the LTTE."

The PMO was quick to categorically deny the veracity of all published reports. "It is clarified that answering a question relating to LTTE activity in Kerala, the NSA only said that the police would monitor such activity. No reference was made in this connection to Tamil Nadu nor was there any mention whatsoever that the LTTE had established a base there," the statement said.

In domestic political circles, it was expected that Narayanan's statement would cause a storm in the Tamil Nadu state legislative assembly proceedings that begin on Wednesday, March 19. According to informed sources, Tamil Nadu's anti-LTTE opposition parties have thus been denied the opportunity of creating a ruckus because of this untimely retraction from the prime minister's office.

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