DHAKA: India urged Sri Lanka on Wednesday to share political power with ethnic minority Tamils after their victory in local council elections, in a bid for ‘genuine reconciliation’ after a decades-long war.

The opposition Tamil alliance swept to victory at the weekend in the first regional council elections in the island’s battle-scarred north.

The vote was welcomed internationally as an initial step towards reconciliation between majority Sinhalese and Tamils after the war.

But the government of president Mahinda Rajapakse has said it wants to reduce the powers of the council, including over land issues and policing, raising concerns about whether the alliance will have any real control in the region, reports The Straits Times.

BDST: 1557 HRS, SEPT 25, 2013
RoR/SRS