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As Colombo burns, India hopes for interim govt, supports democracy, stability, economic recovery

The island nation, which is facing severe economic problems, saw massive violence Monday, as pro-and-anti-government protestors clashed, following PM Mahinda Rajapaksa's resignation.

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New Delhi: A day after Sri Lanka erupted in violence following the resignation of the country’s Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa, India said Tuesday it supports “democracy, stability and economic recovery” in the strategically located island nation and will “always be guided” by the interest of the Sri Lankans through a democratic process”.

“As a close neighbour of Sri Lanka, with historical ties, India is fully supportive of its democracy, stability and economic recovery,” said Arindam Bagchi, spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs.

Bagchi added: “In keeping with our ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy, India has extended this year alone support worth over US$ 3.5 billion to the people of Sri Lanka for helping them overcome their current difficulties. In addition, the people of India have provided assistance for mitigating the shortages of essential items such as food, medicine etc. India will always be guided by the best interests of the people of Sri Lanka expressed through democratic processes.”

According to top-level sources, India is hoping for an “interim” government in Colombo following Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa’s resignation Monday. The resignation led to the eruption of massive violence in the strategically located island country, as anti-government and pro-government protestors clashed.

Sri Lanka has been witnessing continuous protests against the Rajapaksa family’s rule since early March, as it was blamed for the economic crisis that has grappled the island nation. For months the common people there have been facing food and fuel shortages, the latter leading to prolonged power-cuts.

However, as the protests began to swell and spread across the country, Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is the elder brother of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, was compelled to leave the post of Prime Minister, leading to severe incidents of violence, in which ancestral homes of the Rajapaksas and several of their ministers were burned down by an angry mob. The island nation had been under a weeklong state of emergency.

New Delhi, which is watching the “fluid” situation that has “gone out of control”, believes that with President Gotabaya retaining his position, he will be able to work out an “interim arrangement” to control and settle the matter, sources said.

Sources also said that India — which has been constantly giving aid to Sri Lanka to tide over the unprecedented economic crisis there — is also not ruling out the fact that early elections may be called there, but believes it will be an “uphill task” to remove President Gotabaya, since that requires a tedious impeachment process under that country’s laws.

Last month, Sri Lanka’s chief government whip Johnston Fernando had told the Parliament that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will “not resign under any circumstances”, as he was elected to office.

Meanwhile, being the largest economy in the neighbourhood, India has been the only country that has been giving humanitarian aid and assistance to Sri Lanka on a sustained basis since 2020, which increased in the past few months as their economy continued to plummet.

However, New Delhi has also been accused of meddling in their internal politics and throwing its weight behind the Rajapaksa brothers.

Sources said, despite India’s consistent support for Sri Lanka, compared to its rival China during its recent crisis, Sri Lankans suffer from a “perception problem” against India, due to the legacy issues owing to Tamil minority reconciliation there.

Ashok Kantha, former Indian envoy to Sri Lanka and China, told ThePrint, “India is acting as the first responder in the present unprecedented economic crisis in Sri Lanka. We did try to make a distinction between helping the Sri Lankans and not the government. We didn’t want our support to be seen as bailing out that government. No statements from our side indicated that we are trying to prop up the present government.”

Kantha, ex-Secretary (East) at the Ministry of External Affairs who is now Director of the Institute of Chinese Studies, also said, the “situation remains very uncertain there. We dealt with the government of the day. That’s the general rule that we follow. Our support has been to provide relief and help the people of Sri Lanka.”

He added: “Security and strategic interests of India and Sri Lanka being closely interlinked. Our priority is now to see how Sri Lanka comes out of the economic and the political crisis.”


Also read: Line of credit, loan, medicines — India-China rivalry finds new ground in Lanka economic crisis


What’s next for Sri Lanka?

The opposition has already made a demand for doing away with the executive presidency system there by abolishing the 20th amendment.

Gautam Bambawale, former Indian envoy to China, Pakistan and Bhutan, said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa may now make attempts to form a multi-party government, to settle the crisis there temporarily.

“This is a blowback to the Rajapaksas. They have decided to sacrifice the PM, so that the President can stay on. Gotabaya will probably form a multi-party government now, a sort of National Unity government. India has helped out to the fullest extent it can. We shall continue to do so,” he said.

Meanwhile, according to sources, until and unless there is political stability in Sri Lanka, the much-needed bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will also be difficult to obtain.

Last month, during her meeting with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva in Washington DC, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman urged that the international agency should support and urgently provide financial assistance to Sri Lanka.

As Sri Lanka exploded Monday, the World Bank also expressed concerns over the instability and violence there.

World Bank’s Country Director for Sri Lanka, Nepal and Maldives, Faris H. Hadad-Zervos said in a tweet, “We are deeply concerned with the perpetration of violence in #SriLanka. Those responsible are only standing in the way of the country’s immediate economic recovery and making the task even more difficult for development partners.

According to Bambawale, “India is helping out the people of Sri Lanka – not a particular government of that country. We are doing what we can, within our capabilities. However, the Sri Lankans themselves must have a game plan of tackling the current crisis. Without such a game plan, there will be no IMF loan, no way out of the crisis.”

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar had assured of help for the Sri Lankans during his last visit there in March.

Sumith Nakandala, senior director, Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies, told ThePrint from Colombo, “The Rajapaksa regime must take full responsibility for what is unfolding in Sri Lanka. The regime had sufficient space and time to resolve the crisis. The protests were absolutely peaceful for the last 31 days, but the regime never wanted to resolve the problem peacefully. Friends of Sri Lankan people must see that the island nation does not descend into anarchy.”

Nakandala added: “India has a definite role, as she is Sri Lanka’s closest neighbour. It should prevail with a wise consul in defusing the tensions among the political parties and other pressure groups. This should not be seen as interfering with another country’s domestic affairs, but as extending a helping hand in resolving a crisis in India’s immediate backyard.”

(Edited by Poulomi Banerjee)


Also read: Spirituality or ‘occult’? Mahinda’s visit to sacred city before resigning as PM raises questions


 

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