Just what the Doctrine ordered

“India wants a president who would deliver credible political power to the Lankan Tamils, and not depend too much on China and Pakistan.”
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By Sachidananda Murthy

(December 16, Kochi, Sri Lanka Guardian) Who will be the better Sri Lankan president from the Indian angle? Incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is seeking a second term, says he “fought India’s war” against the LTTE. The combined opposition has pitted war hero Sarath Fonseka, and former prime minister Ranil Wickramasinghe has been to Delhi to apprise the leadership of the danger of backing Rajapaksa.

India wants a president who would deliver credible political power to the Lankan Tamils, and not depend too much on China and Pakistan.

India is now in the habit of getting the leader it prefers in the neighbourhood. The last rounds of transfer of power in Nepal and Bangladesh have brought leaders favourable to New Delhi’s interests.

Former Nepal prime minister and Maoist leader Prachanda, who fostered anti-India sentiments, alleges that New Delhi plotted his downfall and the moderate Madhav Nepal’s ascendancy. When Sheikh Hasina became Bangladesh prime minister, India saw the return of an old friend.

Hamid Karzai’s continuation as the Afghan president has also been to India’s liking, though western powers slam his inefficiency and corrupt government. Many western diplomats believe that India persuaded Karzai’s rival Abdullah Abdullah to pull out of the contest so that Karzai is declared elected, without the mess of re-polling.

India has been comfortable with the new Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed, despite its warm relations with Maumoon Gayoom, who ruled the small group of islands for nearly three decades.
The Sri Lankan election, due in January, promises to be a jostle between two men who claim to be the same military victory’s architects. Rajapaksa wanted to visit India after Velupillai Prabhakaran’s end, but the domestic Tamil sentiment was unfavourable.
Manmohan Singh did not want India to be seen celebrating the Sri Lankan victory, when the internally displaced Tamils were confined to camps. Rajapaksa, however, visited India—but it was a pilgrimage to Tirupati.

Now Fonseka, who once called Tamil Nadu politicians a “bunch of jokers”, too, is sending signals that he would be friendly to India.

The Prime Minister’s team has sufficient Sri Lankan experts. National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan has been handling Sri Lankan issues since his days in the Intelligence Bureau. Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao was India’s high commissioner to Sri Lanka and has contacts on both sides of the political fence in the island nation.

Interestingly, it was former prime minister I.K. Gujral who enunciated the doctrine for India to reach out to its neighbours, to ease the strained relations. Manmohan Singh has put into effect the Gujral Doctrine, though relationship with China has become strained, and the one with Pakistan has its ups and downs.

-Sri Lanka Guardian