Amid strong opposition from all quarters to Prime Minister designate Narendra Modi's invite to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa for his swearing-in, CPI(M) on Sunday said the Centre should utilise this occasion for resolving the Lankan Tamils issue.

"There has been no investigation into the alleged human rights violations during the final phase of war (against LTTE in 2009). Also no steps had been taken for devolution of powers in Tamil areas...", CPI-M state General Secretary G Ramakrishnan said in a statement issued here.

The Central Government should utilise the visit of Rajapaksa to Delhi tomorrow and "exert more pressure" on him to solve the Tamils issue, he added.

The invitation to Rajapaksa by Modi has been condemned by all major political parties in Tamil Nadu with Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and DMK President M Karunanidhi criticising the move in view of alleged war crimes by Lankan Army during the last leg of the battle against LTTE in 2009.

NDA's allies MDMK, PMK and DMDK have also opposed the visit of Rajapaksa.

Meanwhile, members of a pro-Tamil outfit staged a protest here against the visit of Rajapaksa.

The agitators of "May 17 Movement", a fringe outfit fighting for the cause of Sri Lankan Tamils, held placards and raised slogans condemning the visit.

"This invitation to Rajapaksa is to giving legitimacy and red carpet welcome to a genocidaire," the movement alleged in a statement. (DNA)