Vaiko supporters set Sri Lankan flag ablaze in Chennai

Activists of the Indian MDMK political party staged a violent protest in front of the Sri Lankan High Commission in Chennai setting fire to a national flag of Sri Lanka over statements made against MDMK General Secretary Vaiko. 

It has been reported that the protest was conducted to express their displeasure over the allegation levied at Vaiyapuri Gopalsamy also known as Vaiko who is a prominent Indian politician by Sri Lankan representatives at the UNHRC held in Geneva earlier this month. 

Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) general secretary Vaiko, who addressed the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva earlier this month, said that he was confronted by a Sri Lankan woman and a few former army personnel for speaking about alleged war crimes committed during the last phase of the civil war in the island nation.

“After I completed my speech, a woman approached me and questioned my right to speak against Sri Lanka when I was not a citizen of the country. I told her that I was from Tamil Nadu, and we had an ‘umbilical cord relationship’ with Sri Lankan Tamils. A few former army personnel surrounded me and accused me of supporting LTTE, describing it as a terrorist organisation,” Mr. Vaiko told The Hindu from Geneva over phone.

Following a tense situation that ensued, activists of the MDMK banded together to condemn the actions of Sri Lankan authorities.