May 17, 2013, 9:44 pm

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BY S VENKAT NARAYAN Our Special Correspondent


NEW DELHI, May 17: India today cautioned Sri Lanka against the Army acquiring private land in the Northern Province for the socalled High Security Zones.


In a telephone conversation with his Sri Lankan counterpart Prof GL Peiris today, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid emphasised that this will not be in accordance with the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) and such a move will not be helpful.


The discussion between the two Oxford-educated ministers also focused on the elections that are to be held in the Northern Province.


Official sources here said Khurshid expressed his concern regarding media reports which have claimed that some consideration is being given to removal of land and police powers from the provinces prior to the elections.


Khurshid urged the Sri Lankan Government not to take any such step in the light of its own commitments relating to the 13th Amendment and its expressed intention to build upon it.


Khurshid raised the issue of 26 Indian fishermen who remain in detention in Sri Lanka and sought their early release.


He also requested for the release of five Indian fishermen who have been in detention in Sri Lanka since November 2012. He emphasized on the need for reviewing their cases and releasing them at an early date.


Prof Peiris suggested that it would be useful to have a meeting of the Indian and Sri Lankan fishermen associations to try and resolve issues among the primary stakeholders in the matter.