SIRIMA SHASTRI PACT 1964
- The Sirima-Shastri Pact of 1964 was an agreement between the governments of India and Sri Lanka, named after their respective Prime Ministers, Sirimavo Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka and Lal Bahadur Shastri of India.
- The pact was signed to address the concerns of the Tamil ethnic minority in Sri Lanka, particularly the issue of the stateless Indian Tamils of Indian origin who had been living in Sri Lanka for generations.
- The Sirima-Shastri Pact was seen as an effort to address the complex issue of stateless Indian Tamils in Sri Lanka and to improve the relations between the two neighboring countries. However, despite the pact, the process of repatriation faced challenges, and not all stateless Indian Tamils were repatriated to India
Here are the key points and objectives of the Sirima-Shastri Pact:
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Repatriation: The main focus of the pact was the repatriation (return to India) of a significant number of stateless Indian Tamils who had been brought to Sri Lanka during the British colonial period to work on tea plantations. These Tamils were not granted Sri Lankan citizenship and were considered stateless.
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Citizenship: The pact aimed to address the concerns of the Indian Tamil community regarding their citizenship status. It was agreed that the Indian Tamils who wished to remain in Sri Lanka would be granted Sri Lankan citizenship, and those who chose to leave would be repatriated to India.
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Safeguards: The pact also included provisions to ensure that the rights and interests of the Indian Tamil community who chose to stay in Sri Lanka would be protected. It sought to address issues related to their language, culture, and representation in government.
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Timeframe: The repatriation process was to be completed within a certain timeframe, and the Indian government agreed to assist in the implementation of repatriation.
