Shutdown in southern India state over Sri Lanka war

Apr 23, 2009, 12:38 GMT

   New Delhi - Daily life was disrupted in India's southern state of Tamil Nadu Thursday as a key regional party called a general strike to demand immediate steps for a ceasefire to the conflict in neighbouring Sri Lanka, news reports said.

   The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) which rules Tamil Nadu and is a partner of India's ruling United Progressive Alliance, called the 12-hour dawn-to-dusk strike, the PTI news agency reported.

   Political analysts saw the strike to show sympathy to the Tamil cause in Sri Lanka as an attempt to secure votes as the state will hold polling for the staggered national elections on May 13.

   The public transport system was disrupted as buses were off the roads and most commercial and business establishments remained closed. State government offices reported 'thin' attendance, the report said.

   No violence was reported from the state, police officials said. Top IT establishments in the state capital Chennai including Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and Wipro remained closed. However, supermarkets remained open. Air and railway operations were also not affected.

   The ruling UPA has come under pressure from the DMK to take a proactive stand and protect Sri Lankan Tamils, who are are facing a 'emergency humanitarian situation' after having fled the war zone as Sri Lankan forces thrust further into the last areas held by Tamil rebels.

   Tamils in the southern Indian state, estimated to number about 60 million, have close links with Sri Lanka's Tamils and people in the state are angry over allegations that scores of civilians have been killed by the Sri Lankan military.

   The Congress-led UPA is in a fix as its needs to ensure DMK does well and wins seats in the parliamentary elections.

   At the same time it risks being seen as lenient on the Tamil Tigers who are blamed for the assassination of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.

   With 39 parliamentary seats, Tamil Nadu is considered a swing state in Indian politics - with the winner there likely to play an important role in forming India's new coalition government.

   The UPA is banking on the DMK - which recorded a landslide victory in the last elections in 2004 - to repeat its performance that will ensure it regains power at the federal level.