The four MPs, Joseph Pararajasingham, Gajendra Kumar Ponnambalam, N. Gajendran and Padmini Sithamparanathan, applied to the Canadian High Commission in Colombo for visas but they were turned down on the basis that the applications came in too late.
But some sources said the Canadian government had other reasons and did not wish to encourage people from other countries to take part in the controversial Toronto festival.
This came after the Jathika Sangha Sammelanaya and the National Movement Against Terrorism (NMAT) held a demonstration outside the Canadian High Commission in Colombo on Thursday, calling on Ottawa to ban the Pongu Thamil festival in Toronto.
