Sri Lanka crisis: Amid the ongoing economic crisis in Sri Lanka, the Parliament is expected to elect the new president on July 20. Ahead of this, names of acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Dullas Alahaperuma and Anura Kamara Dissanayake have surfaced, as candidates who will contest these elections, reported Sri Lanka's Daily Mirror.
Meanwhile, LoP Sajith Premadasa withdrew his name from candidacy. "I hereby withdraw my candidacy for the position of President," he said. He is the leader of the principal opposition party Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), which is opposed to Wickremesinghe. He was trying to strike a deal with Dullas Alahapperuma, a staunch Sinhala Buddhist nationalist and a key member of the breakaway group of SLPP.
Security beefed up ahead of Prez polls
On Monday, Sri Lankan Members of Parliament from the ruling party Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) complained of receiving threat messages on social media, warning them against voting for Sri Lanka's Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe. Consequently, the police and the country’s armed forces have been stationed in and around the Parliament complex on Tuesday. Police have warned that strict action would be taken against those who had created, published and circulated such threatening posts against lawmakers on social media.
Wednesday’s vote would also be a rare occasion when the House Speaker will vote. Never in the history of the presidency since 1978, Parliament had voted to elect a president. Presidential elections in 1982, 1988, 1994, 1999, 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2019 had elected them by popular vote. The only previous occasion when the presidency became vacant mid-term was in 1993 when president Ranasinghe Premadasa was assassinated. DB Wijetunga was unanimously endorsed by Parliament to run the balance of Premadasa’s term. The new president will serve the remaining tenure of Rajapaksa till November 2024.
Sri Lanka Parliament dominated by SLPP party
The 225-member Parliament is dominated by the ruling SLPP party, which has nearly 100 lawmakers. The ruling SLPP which officially announced it would be backing Wickremesinghe, the acting president, found some resistance to its decision from within. The 73-year-old politician is currently the frontrunner through his United National Party was routed in the 2020 parliamentary election.
Wickremesinghe on Monday declared a state of emergency giving him broad powers ahead of the crucial presidential election on Wednesday, a move dubbed as an "undemocratic draconian act" by the opposition leaders amid growing demands for his resignation. The decision to impose the emergency also came amid growing protests demanding Wickremesinghe's resignation.
(with inputs from agencies)
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