The reason for postponing the much-anticipated meeting between fishermen of India and Sri Lanka, which was scheduled to be held in Colombo on Thursday, was due to pressure from the Tamil Nadu government, the Deputy Fisheries Minister said.
The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, J. Jayalalithaa, is not allowing for the India-Sri Lanka fishermen issue to be resolved successfully, Deputy Minister Sarath Kumara Gunaratne said.
It was announced yesterday (12) that the Indian fishermen representatives would not be taking part in the second round of talks, to be held today, seeking more time.
However, the Deputy Minister stated that the Indian Central Government has made a request for the discussions to be held on March 18 instead.
Though there was an element of uncertainty about the meeting — Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa had demanded the release of all fishermen and trawlers before the talks — the meeting looked nearly certain on Wednesday, especially after the Sri Lankan government ordered the release of all 172 Indian fishermen in its custody, along with their 44 trawlers that had been seized.
