New Delhi:
Taking a tough stand on the recent killings of Indian fishermen allegedly by the Sri Lankan navy, sources have told NDTV that Foreign Minister SM Krishna has asked Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao to go to Colombo to take up the matter.
Sources say Ms Rao will go to Lanka on Sunday and meet the Lankan officials on Monday.
Last week a fisherman from Tamil Nadu was brutally killed, just days after a similar incident in Lankan waters. The Sri Lankan government has denied any wrongdoing by them but India had protested strongly.
The killings are fast turning into an election issue in Tamil Nadu.
One of the victims, Jayakumar, was an AIADMK worker and the party's chief Jayalalithaa visited his widow at a village in Nagapattinam district recently.
Jayalalithaa stepped up the political pressure and asked the Prime Minister to resign if he can't do anything about the situation.
"The Central government should issue a stern warning to Sri Lanka that they will not dare to attack Indian fishermen. But that's not happening, because the PM is ineffectual. The PM should step down if he does not know what to do," said Jayalalithaa.
Jayalalithaa promised protection to Tamil Nadu fishermen if she was voted to power in the upcoming assembly polls.
Fishermen in Tamil Nadu could change political fortunes in around 75 assembly constituencies. Analysts say Jayalalithaa is capitalising on this to woo the community.
Certainly, this is another challenge for the ruling DMK - Congress in Tamil Nadu ahead of assembly polls besides the 2G spectrum scam and the price rise.
Expressing concern over the killing of Tamil Nadu fishermen allegedly by the Sri Lankan Navy, Chief Minister M Karunanidhi also urged the Centre to take up the matter with Colombo and punish the guilty.
Expressing his condolences to the bereaved family members of the deceased Jayakumar, Karunanidhi announced a sum of Rs five lakh as compensation to the kin of the victim.
After the January 12 killing, India had summoned the Sri Lankan High Commissioner and lodged a strong protest over the incident. But the island nation has denied involvement of its navy in it.
Karunanidhi had sent a telegram to the Prime Minister demanding his intervention to stop such attacks.