By admin on May 8, 2014 By VIABHAV VATS PUZHAL, India As Tamil civilians were increasingly caught in the crss!ire "etween the Indian Peace #ee$ing %rce and the Li"eratin Tigers ! Tamil &elam in the '()*s, Sasitharan and his $arents !llwed the e+dus !rm the Tamil,ma-rity nrthern and eastern regins ! Sri Lan.a/ As a (,year,ld in '((*, 0r/ Sasitharan, wh uses nly ne name, was ta.en "y his $arents acrss the Pal. Strait "y "at, the mde ! trans$rt !avred "y thusands ! re!ugees "e!re them/ 0r/ Sasitharan, wh grew u$ in the sunny and windswe$t har"r city ! Trincmalee, has !ew memries ! his early years in Sri Lan.a/ In India, his !amily settled near Bengaluru, where 0r/ Sasitharan studied at a schl !r Sri Lan.an re!ugees/ Unli.e mst ! the re!ugees wh arrived in India, 0r/ Sasitharan attended cllege, "ut a lac. ! mney !rced him t dr$ ut "e!re he culd graduate/ 1hat !llwed was a reverse -urney in scial m"ility/ 0r/ Sasitharan, wh is !luent in &nglish, gt a -" as a "an. salesman in 2hennai, the ca$ital ! Tamil 3adu/ His em$lyers !ired him a!ter they discvered he was nt an Indian citi4en/ 5The mment I s$.e in Tamil, they reali4ed I had a Sri Lan.an accent,6 he said/ 7es$ite "eing s.illed and !luent in the &nglish language, a valua"le asset in India8s mdern ecnmy, 0r/ Sasitharan, nw 9:, wr.s as a $etty la"rer in the cuntry8s in!rmal sectr, li!ting heavy lads !r a su"sistence wage/ %r the $ast decade, 0r/ Sasitharan has "een living at the #angaravai cam$ in Pu4hal, an hur nrth ! 2hennai and ne ! ''* such cam$s !r Sri Lan.an re!ugees acrss the state ! Tamil 3adu/ Accrding t :*'9 !igures "y the ;rgani4atin !r &elam <e!ugees <eha"ilitatin, 0r/ Sasitharan is ne ! ==,:)= Sri Lan.an re!ugees wh currently reside in India/ %r the mst $art, $litical leaders in Tamil 3adu, and the rest ! India, $ay little attentin t the re!ugees8 dire living cnditins/ But every time an electin seasn a$$raches in Tamil 3adu, $arties !rantically cm$ete t $rtray themselves as cham$ins ! the Sri Lan.an Tamils, an issue that still has sme emtinal resnance in the state/ In %e"ruary, >ayalalithaa >ayaram, the chie! minister ! Tamil 3adu, declared that her gvernment wuld release the cnvicted assassins ! !rmer Prime 0inister <a-iv ?andhi/ 0r/ ?andhi8s assassinatin in '((' was $ltted and e+ecuted "y the Li"eratin Tigers ! Tamil &elam/ 0s/ >ayaram8s decisin t !ree 0r/ ?andhi8s assassins was annunced shrtly a!ter an emergency ca"inet meeting that !llwed the Su$reme 2urt8s cmmuting ! the death sentences ! 0r/ ?andhi8s assassins t li!e im$risnment, leaving their !ate in the hands ! the state gvernment/ 0s/ >ayaram8s mve was seen "y $litical "servers as an attem$t t $sitin hersel! as the leader mst sym$athetic t the cause ! Sri Lan.an Tamils, wh share ethnicity and language with the Tamils ! India/ 1ith this mve, 0s/ >ayaram, $reviusly a "itter critic ! the Li"eratin Tigers ! Tamil &elam, als inaugurated the electin,seasn chest,"eating ver the issue/ 0/ #arunanidhi, the )(,year,ld leader ! the $$sitin 7ravida 0unnetra #a4hagam, accused 0s/ >ayaram ! hy$crisy and $$rtunism/ At an electin rally in 2hennai in A$ril, 0r/ #arunanidhi, wh has devted a large $rtin ! his s$eeches t the Sri Lan.an Tamil issue thrughut the cam$aign, said 5>ayalalithaa is shedding crcdile tears !r Sri Lan.an Tamils/6 @et this $eridic !ren4y has achieved little !r thusands ! re!ugees li.e 0r/ Sasitharan, wh e+ist in lim" in Tamil 3adu8s sAualid cam$s/ 5It8s a lt ! gimmic.s and !a.e $sturing,6 said <hini 0han, an Indian -urnalist whse ". n the Sri Lan.an civil war will a$$ear this year/ 5It8s an emtive issue, "ut there is nthing t "e gained !rm the "etterment ! Sri Lan.an re!ugees, es$ecially as the re!ugees themselves can8t vte/6 In Pu4hal, where 0r/ Sasitharan has lived !r the $ast decade, cnditins ! $erilus sanitatin $revail/ Amid the $en sewage, tiny, unventilated "ric. huses cvered "y tin r!s "a.e in Tamil 3adu8s scrching summer, creating living cnditins that are anything "ut hs$ita"le/ 0st re!ugees are given a meager allwance "y the Tamil 3adu gvernment/ The eldest male ! the !amily receives B'= a mnth, while ther mem"ers ! the !amily a"ve the age ! ': get B'9/ 2hildren "elw ': are given BC a mnth each/ %amilies ! re!ugees su$$lement this incme with menial -"s, as huse $ainters and day la"rers in areas neigh"ring the cam$s/ Sri Lan.an re!ugees in India live under cnstant surveillance "y state intelligence and are restricted in their mvement/ 7ee$a., :C, wh lives at the #angavarai cam$ in Pu4hal, said residents culd nt even "uy SI0 cards !r their m"ile $hnes/ 51e need t sign every time we enter r leave,6 he said/ 5And i! the $rime minister ever visits Tamil 3adu, we are all lc.ed u$ inside the cam$/6 There is evidence t suggest that the heated $litical discurse generated in Tamil 3adu ver the Sri Lan.an Tamil issue may "e e+acer"ating the situatin/ Smaller $arties li.e the 0arumalarchi 7ravida 0unnetra #a4hagam, which wants an inde$endent Tamil hmeland in Sri Lan.a, ma.e it harder !r re!ugees in India wh wuld li.e t return hme/ 5&+treme $sitins in Tamil 3adu ma.e recnciliatin di!!icult,6 said S/2/ 2handrahasan, !under and head ! the ;rgani4atin !r &elam <e!ugees <eha"ilitatin/ 51e wuld li.e all $arties t ta.e mderate $sitins and nt $ut em$hasis n the "rea.ing u$ ! Sri Lan.a/ Hate s$eeches d us a lt ! harm/6 0r/ 2handrahasan "elieves the re$atriatin ! Sri Lan.an re!ugees in India remains the nly $ermanent slutin t the $r"lem/ That may nt "e an $tin !r re!ugees li.e 0r/ Sasitharan, t scarred "y the $ast t ever return/ 0r/ Sasitharan had h$ed t get Indian citi4enshi$, "ut since India is nt a signatry t the '(D' <e!ugee 2nventin, there is n structured rute t citi4enshi$ !r thse wh see. asylum/ 7es$ite the $rmise ! a less uncertain legal e+istence in Sri Lan.a, 0r/ Sasitharan said he wuld stay in India/ 51e are sa!e here,6 he said/ 51e are nt sa!e in Sri Lan.a/6 @et the dds remain stac.ed against re!ugees li.e 0r/ Sasitharan/ Since the end ! the Sri Lan.an civil war in :**(, internatinal attentin has mstly dri!ted away !rm the re!ugees in India, !cusing instead n the $light ! Tamils within Sri Lan.a/ And Tamil $arties acrss the s$ectrum, having whi$$ed u$ the re!ugees8 cause during electin seasn, which ended in Tamil 3adu n A$ril :E, have nce again mved n/ F2urtesy the 3ew @r. TimesG