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Sat, 25 May 2013 13:28:03
Sri Lanka warns citizens against travel to Tamil Nadu
04 Sep, 2012 07:40:09
Sep 04, 2012 (LBO) - Sri Lanka has advised citizens not to travel to India's Tamil Nadu state following a series of incidents which culminated in a group of pilgrims being forced to take refuge in a Catholic Church after they were mobbed.
"The Government of Sri Lanka is constrained to request Sri Lankan nationals in the interest of their security to desist from undertaking visits to Tamil Nadu until further notice," Sri Lanka's foreign ministry said in a statement.

"Travel to all other states in India are safe for Sri Lanka nationals."

The foreign ministry said Sri Lanka "regrets the increasing number of instances of intimidation of Sri Lankan nationals visiting Tamil Nadu for the purposes of tourism, religious pilgrimages, sporting and cultural activities and professional training."

"These visits are a reflection of people to people contact between the polity of two countries which are bound by age old friendly ties and traditions," the foreign ministry said.

"Most recently today, 184 pilgrims visiting the Poornimatha Church in Thanjavur have been mobbed and become refuge in the church. The Government of Sri Lanka has taken all steps required through the Indian Government to seek the safety of these pilgrims."

The incident with Catholic pilgrims is the latest in a series of incidents that have raised tensions between Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu state.

Earlier this week Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa ordered a Sri Lankan football team to be sent back and suspended a state official for allowing them to play a friendly match in Chennai.

Jayalalithaa has objected to members of Sri Lanka's military being trained in India.

Uneasy relations between Sri Lanka and the South Indian state has soured further the end of a 30-year war with Tamil Tiger separatists in 2009, with political groups in the state revving up calls for war crimes probes against Sri Lanka's military and fishing dispute also flaring up.

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READER COMMENT(S)
2. Podda Sep 05
Karan, Sri Lankans are looking forward to see what steps are taken by the Indian government to resolve the problem. Its your government that started to give into the Tamilnadu pressure (E.g.: voting against Sri Lanka in Geneva).

Now they got your government bent over to their will, they will not rest until they get their separate estate in Tamilnadu. Indian Government should have seen further than this.

1. karan Sep 04
It is very regrettable that sri lankan government has to issue such a travel advisory. whole of india (except tamilnadu) treat sri lanka as a friend. Due to the vote bank policies of tamil nadu government , things have come to the present state. Well the people of tamil nadu dont even gel with the rest of india, leave alone the sri lankans.

I being a north indian has seen it while visiting tamil nadu. they are not friendly people. sri lankan nationals are whole heartedly welcome in the rest of india.