UN Lanka resolution: DMK calls high-level meeting

With India under pressure from Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu to support a United States-sponsored resolution in the United Nations Human Rights Commission against Sri Lanka for alleged war crimes, United Progressive Alliance's key constituent Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam on Saturday announced the convening of its high-level committee on March 20 to discuss the issue.

Party chief M Karunanidhi will chair the meeting on Tuesday morning at its headquarters in Chennai, DMK general secretary K Anbazhagan said in a statement.

The agenda at the meeting would be "India supporting the resolution on Sri Lankan army's war crimes against Ealam Tamils," he said.

DMK's decision is being perceived as a pressure tactic as Karunanidhi had repeatedly stressed on India's backing of the resolution at the UNHRC.

He had recently said the DMK would consider it as a "betrayal of Tamils" if New Delhi supported Colombo even as a Sri Lankan official had claimed to have secured India's support for it in UNHRC.

The high-level committee is scheduled at a time when DMK has been adopting a 'blow-hot-blow-cold' stand on its eight year-old ally Congress.

Asked if he would review his party's support to the Centre if it failed to concede to its demand in the UNHRC, Karunanidhi had said he cannot take a decision by himself and the party would take a final decision.