Tamil Progressive Alliance leader Mano Ganesan has called for constitutional recognition of a Non-Territorial Tamil Community Council while assuring India that ongoing constitutional reforms will not diminish Provincial Council powers.
During discussions with Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri at India House in Colombo, Tamil Progressive Alliance Leader Mano Ganesan outlined his vision for constitutional reform that would simultaneously protect decentralised governance structures and address the needs of the Indian-Origin Tamil community. The meeting, which included representatives from Sri Lanka's Indian-origin Tamil population and Ceylon Workers' Congress officials, reflected ongoing efforts to balance multiple stakeholder concerns during the island's constitutional review process.
Ganesan acknowledged India's concerns regarding the potential weakening of Provincial Councils, given India's significant role in establishing these structures through the 1987 Indo-Lanka Accord. He sought to address these concerns by pointing to assurances from President Anura Kumara Dissanayake that the constitutional reform process would resume from its previous stage rather than beginning anew. According to Ganesan, the Constitutional Steering Committee's Interim Report did not propose reducing Provincial Council powers, but instead recommended strengthening these institutions and advancing power-sharing mechanisms further.
Central to Ganesan's proposal is the establishment of a Non-Territorial Tamil Community Council (NTTC) for Indian-origin Tamils, which he argued would represent democratic aspirations that should be recognised constitutionally. Ganesan, who served on the Constitutional Steering Committee alongside President Dissanayake, emphasised that abandoning commitments to devolution would be both politically and morally inconsistent. He stated that constitutional reform must simultaneously protect decentralised governance, advance power-sharing arrangements, and secure constitutional recognition for the NTTC, signalling the Tamil Progressive Alliance's intention to engage constructively while maintaining firm positions on these issues.
