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Chandrasekaran again backs LTTE chief
Minister and UPF leader P. Chandrasekaran has called on the Tamil people to strengthen the hands of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran -- while the UPF is threatening to bring down the UNF coalition in the Central Province.

Mr. Chandrasekaran emerging as the first government minister to address a Pongu Thamil rally said at the Mannar meeting that Mr. Prabhakaran had helped the Tamils to rethink about their origin and the future.

His comments in Mannar followed equally controversial remarks he reportedly made in Norway though he later denied the reports. Mr. Chandrasekeran speaking at a Norway rally in support of a Tamil candidate was reported to have said that all Tamils should unite under Mr. Prabhakaran.

Mr. Chandrasekeran told the Mannar meeting he would not hesitate to speak out for the Tamil people though he was a minister in the government. He urged the government to be more sensitive to the feelings of the Tamils.

Mr. Chandrasekeran's latest statements of support for the LTTE came as his party warned it might pull out of a delicately-balanced coalition with the UNF and the CWC in the Central Provincial Council.

The ruling coalition has 30 seats while the opposition has 28 and a crossover by the two UPF members could tilt the balance. UPF sources said they were being overlooked in running the affairs of the province.

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