Chennai:
DMK chief M Karunanidhi today threatened to snap ties with the Congress-led UPA government if the Centre doesn't amend the resolution to incorporate the demand for international probe and time-bound action against those who may be found guilty of war crimes in Sri Lanka.
"If our demands are not met, it is doubtful whether our ties with the alliance (UPA) will continue," Mr Karunanidhi told reporters after he wrote a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, saying he felt "let down" by the government on the issue.
Mr Karunanidhi's threat went one step further from his warning two days ago to pull out his ministers from the union cabinet if the government failed to concede his party's demand. This warning came despite Finance Minister P Chidambaram hinting at a possible vote against Sri Lanka yesterday.
"I'm confident that if phrases in the UN resolution sought credible independent international probe, India would support it," Mr Chidambaram said.
The minister also sought to assure students who are gearing up for massive protests from Monday across Tamil Nadu, demanding affirmative action against Colombo at the UN session. "I'm feeding you my confidence and you feed this confidence to our students," he said.
The government, which has so far been non-committal over its stand on the Lankan Tamils issue, yesterday attempted to placate the DMK with Union Minister V Narayanasamy saying the Prime Minister would "definitely consider all aspects" before taking a decision on the resolution.
With 18 MPs, Mr Karunanidhi's party is the second biggest constituent of the Congress-led UPA, providing crucial support to a government that has, of late, been tested vigorously by several coalition partners.
The US-sponsored motion puts the island nation in the dock over alleged war crimes and rights violations against Tamil civilians during the final phase of the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Last year, India had supported a similar resolution following pressure from political parties in Tamil Nadu.