The Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Jayalalithaa, on Wednesday urged Prime Minister Modi to ensure that visas were issued to the investigative team, appointed by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to carry out an international inquiry into mass atrocities in Sri Lanka, following reports in the Sri Lankan press that India had denied them visas.
“I am surprised to see media reports which indicate that India has refused visas to the United Nations Investigation Committee which has been formed to conduct the investigation. If the media reports are true and India has actually refused visas to the United Nations committee probing the human rights violations in Sri Lanka, this would be a bitter disappointment to the people of Tamil Nadu who are determined to ensure that the Sri Lankan regime is held to account for its heinous acts against Tamils," wrote Jayalalithaa in a letter to Modi, the New Indian Express reported.
She further added:
“I am surprised to see media reports which indicate that India has refused visas to the United Nations Investigation Committee which has been formed to conduct the investigation. If the media reports are true and India has actually refused visas to the United Nations committee probing the human rights violations in Sri Lanka, this would be a bitter disappointment to the people of Tamil Nadu who are determined to ensure that the Sri Lankan regime is held to account for its heinous acts against Tamils," wrote Jayalalithaa in a letter to Modi, the New Indian Express reported.
She further added:
“Given that India is geographically Sri Lanka’s closest neighbour and a number of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees are still residing in Tamil Nadu, India is definitely a place that any team probing human rights violations in Sri Lanka should visit to conduct its inquiries,"
"I request you to kindly intervene in the issue and ensure that the international committee is granted the necessary visas and is in a position to complete a fair and impartial enquiry into the human rights violations in Sri Lanka."