Tamil National Alliance MP Mavai Senathirajah said he did not ask the government to beef up military security in the Northern Province following Easter Sunday bombings.
Senathirajah denied yesterday that he had called on the government to provide military security to the Northern and Eastern Provinces considering the prevailing situation in the country.
The media reported and aired MP Senathirajah as saying “The Army and the police security should be increased to ensure the people’s safety in the North. Earlier we wanted to get rid of their presence, but now we want them to protect us.”
Senathirajah said, “I said that international intelligence personnel may be brought into the country to help ensure the protection of the people in the North and East, for, so many Tamil people had been killed in the attack, and also because of the claim of Islamic State (ISIS) responsibility in carrying it out.”
Asked how many Tamil people were killed in the multiple blasts on that day, Senathirajah said there were many Tamil Christians who had attended the Easter mass that morning in those churches that were exploded by the terrorists. “I do not have the numbers yet,” he said.
“There are many countries that have expressed their willingness to send their intelligence units to Sri Lanka, among them US, UK, India and Australia, to offer Sri Lanka their support to fight the terrorists,” he said.
Asked if he was not satisfied with the ongoing search and cordon operations under way by Sri Lanka military and police in the Northern and the Eastern Provinces to apprehend the suspects of the terror attack, he said, “The search and cordon operations by Sri Lanka military troops are still ongoing.”
Asked if the security forces were not making satisfactory progress in the North and East in terms of tackling the situation there, Senathirajah said he needed time to say anything about it, and declined to comment.