Why no cricket diplomacy with Lanka: Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray

MUMBAI: As with Pakistan, why can't the problems of people of Tamil origin living in Sri Lanka be resolved through 'cricket diplomacy', Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray asked Friday. "People of Tamil origin living in Sri Lanka are also facing problems there. Why can't their issues be resolved through the route of 'cricket diplomacy' as with Pakistan?" Thackeray wrote in an editorial in "Saamna", the Shiv Sena mouthpiece. Expressing his unhappiness over Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's invitation to Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani for practising 'cricket diplomacy', Thackeray asked whether a similar invite had been sent to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. He alleged in the edit that the special invitation to Pakistan reeks of attempts to woo the Muslims in India, and wondered how many pending problems between the two countries were resolved by the latest round of 'cricket diplomacy'. Thackeray said it was good that the Pakistani team was 'wrapped' up in its defeat in Mohali and did not set foot in Maharashtra. http://expressbuzz.com/nation/why-no-cricket-diplomacy-with-lanka-thackeray/261680.html