The UPA Government is aware of the problems of Tamils in Sri Lanka and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is using the diplomatic route to find an amicable solution, a senior Congress MP from Tamil Nadu has said.

M Krishnasswamy, MP from Arani and former President of Tamil Nadu Congress Committee said both the UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and premier Singh had detailed discussions on the plight of Sri Lankan Tamils and the alleged attacks on Indian fishermen off the coast of the island nation.

“There has been considerable drop in mid-sea shooting incidents as the Government of India has very clearly told (Sri Lanka) that Indian fishermen should not be shot at,” he said while addressing an event organised by the Tamil Nadu Chapter of Indian National Overseas Congress (INOC) in US yesterday.

Unfortunately in Tamil Nadu, certain regional and caste oriented parties are playing to the gallery on the serious matter, bringing disrepute not only to the UPA Government but also to the nation as a whole, Krishnasswamy said.

He is in New York as part of a parliamentary delegation to the United Nations to address UN General Assembly sessions.

“What is needed at this hour is restraint and none of the actions should make matters worse. The External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid has told me time and again that he is aware of the entire situation and has been taking up at highest level and that India will ensure that the Tamils live with peace and dignity,” he said.

“We do not need rabble rousing speeches and rhetoric that may sound well in Tamil Nadu but will not actually help the suffering Tamils and if these so called supporters of Eelam Tamils are genuinely interested in the welfare of the island Tamils,” the veteran leader added. - PTI