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Pakistani official’s alleged visit causes a stir

25 Sep 2021

  • TNA calls for clarity on alleged visit to Delft Island
  • Pakistan High Commission denies reports
By Asiri Fernando The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) yesterday (25) expressed concern and called for clarity regarding reports of an alleged visit by a Pakistani diplomat to Delft Island off Jaffna last week. The report, which first appeared in Tamil language media platforms, was rejected by the Pakistan High Commission in Colombo. “If the reports are true, we are concerned about the visit. We don’t want any issues between regional powers in our areas. We are looking to find out the truth about the reported visit,” TNA Jaffna District MP M.A. Sumanthiran told The Sunday Morning. Responding to a query from The Sunday Morning, Pakistan High Commission Press Attaché Kalsoom Qaiser denied the reports, calling them fake news. According to Qaiser, Pakistani High Commissioner Maj. Gen. (Retd.) Muhammad Saad Khattak had not visited the islands off the Jaffna Peninsula last week. When contacted, Delft Divisional Secretary S. Sathyasothi told The Sunday Morning that although he had heard of a visit by a Pakistani diplomat with their family, he could not confirm it. “There was no notification of a diplomat’s visit to this office. We were not informed,” he said. Sathyasothi opined that if confirmed, it may have been a private visit. Delft Island figured prominently in media reports of late. Earlier this year, a cabinet-appointed standing committee on procurement recommended awarding a mixed renewable energy project on Delft Island to a Chinese firm. The move drew strong diplomatic protest from India, highlighting security concerns about a Chinese presence in close proximity to the Tamil Nadu coast. Political parties in the North also criticised the move. The $ 12 million project, funded by Asian Development Bank (ADB), was awarded to MS/Sinosar-Etechwin, a joint venture in China, which was to partner with the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) on the proposed project. It is in such a backdrop that news of a Pakistani diplomat visiting the North, especially the Delft Island, caused a stir in the Northern Province.


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