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A protest was held at Trichy airport in Tamil Nadu earlier today, condemning India's decision to support Sri Lanka in hosting the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in November, as Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh came to visit the state.
The protest organised by the MDMK, saw over 500 people arrested at Trichy airport, including MDMK General Secretary Vaiko. They have yet to be charged.
Speaking to Tamil Guardian, Thirumurugan Gandhi from the May 17th Movement said,
"We wanted to display black flags to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh beacuse of his support for Sri Lanka. Without India's support Sri Lanka would not have had the opportunity to host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting - India's role made it possible for them to host it."
"We are protesting against the India Prime Minister for supporting a genocidal government with their pro-Sri Lanka stand, and condemn his actions. That is why we are raising black flags during his visit to Trichy."
"We are calling for the cancellation of CHOGM in Sri Lanka, and the May 17th Movement as well as other organisations are joining Vaiko's call."The May 17th Movement also released a statement (in Tamil) on their facebook page here.
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Earlier MDMK General Secretary Vaiko had told the Times of India,
"To show our opposition and condemn the betrayal of Centre on Tamil issues, we are holding this agitation."Photos courtesy of Vaiko's Facebook page here.
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