• RW meets Jaishankar in Perth at IOC; discusses Trincomalee development and UPI project launch
• RW takes SJB’s Ishak and SLPP’s Chinthaka to Aussie with him, gets them to attend VIP meetings
• JVP’s Indian visit a part of a long game started during High Comm. Baglay’s tenure two years ago
• AKD’s Indian visit expected to send message to Chinese; SJB says India invited Sajith before JVP’s AKD
• Namal and Limini visit Ram Temple in India; Maithripala, SJB to visit India, dates yet to be confirmed
• Sajith and SJB decide to boycott RW’s Throne Speech, fails to communicate to all Opposition parties
• Rajitha, Champika, Fonseka and others remain in Chamber; Maithripala says not told of boycott plan
• SF meets RW after Throne Speech; SJB leadership considers removing ‘errant’ SF from chairmanship
• CBK named as Leader of PA at Executive Committee meet; Yapa, Lanza also attend PA formation meet
• ITAK’s Adaikalanathan had visited Uganda during RW visit with Allirajah; RW avoids meeting Allirajah 

President Ranil Wickremesinghe is yet to succeed in bridging the widening divide between his Government and the general public despite the many policy statements read by him in Parliament on around five occasions, including the two Budgets presented by him as Finance Minister since assuming office.

Sri Lanka last week celebrated its 76th Independence and the Government, in an attempt at reconciliation among communities, had the National Anthem sung in both Sinhala and Tamil. However, whether the singing of a National Anthem in Sinhala and Tamil alone would suffice to resolve the longstanding issues of the Tamil people should be considered separately.

The fact that Police had fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse a group of Jaffna University students and political leaders of the north that staged a protest in Iranamadu, Kilinochchi calling the Independence Day a ‘black day’ might be something Wickremesinghe and his Government may have to take into account.

Another fact that Wickremesinghe and Co. will need to be mindful of is the growing public dissention over the increasingly heavier burdens being placed on the general public.

However, President Wickremesinghe on Wednesday (7), while delivering the Throne Speech during the opening of the fifth session of the ninth Parliament, noted that the Government was planning to reduce the tax burden as economic reforms continued to stabilise the economy. “We are also revising the VAT percentage to further support economic growth,” he had noted.

It is learnt that these words had not gone down well with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has been advocating for more taxes to increase the country’s revenue. The IMF is also preparing to engage in the next review of Sri Lanka’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) with focus on Sri Lanka’s revenue generation and finalisation of debt restructuring.

According to informed sources, while it is difficult to pin a date for finalising the debt restructuring process, the Sri Lankan Government is hopeful of concluding the process by end-March.

According to the President, Sri Lanka will have to pay $ 3 billion per year in debt servicing even after the $ 17 billion debt reduction anticipated by debt restructuring.

Aussie tour

President Wickremesinghe meanwhile last week engaged on a brief official tour to Perth, Australia to attend the Indian Ocean Conference (IOC). While the President delivered the keynote address at the conference, the visit was also aimed at meeting several regional leaders.

It is in such a backdrop that President Wickremesinghe met with India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on the sidelines of the IOC. The meeting had lasted for around 40 minutes and the discussion had been focused on the ongoing Indian projects in Sri Lanka, especially the finalising of the Trincomalee development project. 

The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) project had also been discussed and it is being launched on Monday (12), highly-placed Government sources said.

Meanwhile, main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Member of Parliament (MP) Ishak Rahuman, who contested the last elections under the All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC), and ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) MP Chinthaka Mayadunne were among the Sri Lankan delegation.

During the Australian visit, the President also met Western Australia Premier Roger Cook, Australia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Penny Wong, and the Sri Lanka diaspora community in Perth.

RW’s invite

However, in the local political scene, President Wickremesinghe, addressing Parliament on Wednesday (7), extended an invitation to all political parties to join hands to embrace a shared vision and common purpose for Sri Lanka.

“I urge each of you, why can’t we adopt such a perspective? Despite our diverse ideas, ethnic backgrounds, languages, provincial residences, faiths, beliefs, and political affiliations, why can’t we unite in a shared vision for the country’s well-being and the future? Why can’t we reach a collective understanding for the benefit of our nation’s youth? Why can’t we join hands to reach great heights?

“In the interest of the nation’s welfare and the prosperity of our youth, most of the Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) have set aside past animosities and reached a consensus. Likewise, longstanding political allies have aligned with the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, including those whom I personally introduced to the political arena. If the Podujana Peramuna can unite for the greater good, why can’t the Samagi Jana Balawegaya follow suit?” he said. 

The President further pointed out that during the period of ‘Good Governance,’ the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) had cooperated closely with the then Government. “MP Anura Dissanayake notably spearheaded the anti-corruption efforts, proposing Mr. Ananda Wijepala to lead the Anti-Corruption Office, a position for which he maintains pertinent records to this day. So why can’t the JVP join forces for the betterment of our nation?” he questioned.

Both the SJB and JVP have however expressed their unwillingness to be identified as supporting the Wickremesinghe Government.

Split over RW

The main Opposition SJB meanwhile showed a split among its legislators when MPs Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, Patali Champika Ranawaka, Kumara Welgama, Ishak Rahuman, Vadivel Suresh, Faizal Cassim, A.H.M. Fowzie, and Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka remained in the House and listened to the President’s Throne Speech when the rest of the SJBers staged a walkout during the speech.

Ranawaka, Welgama, and Suresh have already declared that they are functioning independently in the House although they contested under the SJB at the last General Election.

SJB and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa led a group of SJB parliamentarians out of the Chamber when Wickremesinghe started to deliver his speech. 

The final decision on boycotting the President’s Throne Speech, it is learnt, had been made during the SJB parliamentary group meeting held in the morning of the opening session of Parliament last week.

SJB MPs Fonseka and Senaratne had not been present at the meeting. The decision of the SJB to boycott the Throne Speech had been communicated to MPs Wimal Weerawansa, Udaya Gammanpila, Vasudeva Nanayakkara, and the like.

However, the message had not been communicated to the other SLPP dissidents in the Opposition as well as the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP).

Maithri in the Chamber

Meanwhile, SLFP Leader, former President Maithripala Sirisena had been seated in his front row seat in the Opposition side of the Chamber when President Wickremesinghe was delivering his Throne Speech.

Sirisena has said that no one had communicated to him about any plan to boycott the President’s speech and that he had therefore remained in the Chamber and listened to it. “I didn’t even receive a telephone call about staging a walkout,” Sirisena had said after the President’s speech.

Several other members in the Opposition representing other political parties were also seen in their seats during the President’s speech. Given that a group of SJBers had also opted to listen to the President’s speech, Premadasa had ended up staging the walkout with only a group of SJB MPs.

RW-SF meet

After delivering the Throne Speech and attending a tea that was hosted in Parliament, President Wickremesinghe had made his way to his office in Parliament.

When the President had arrived at his office, Fonseka had been waiting for him there. Wickremesinghe and Fonseka had then had a discussion for about 20 minutes.

Although Fonseka had met Wickremesinghe on several occasions during the past few months, the President’s media had put out the news of the meeting on Wednesday in order to portray support for Wickremesinghe among SJB MPs and to create an impression that Fonseka supported him (the President).

There was much talk in political circles about Fonseka’s meetings with Wickremesinghe and the release of some monies held by the State that had been part of Fonseka’s campaign funds during the 2010 Presidential Election.

JVP’s change

Be that as it may, the pièce de résistance of Sri Lanka’s political stage was the marked shift in the JVP’s position on India.

The JVP for the past four decades had engaged in an anti-Indian programme, which had even led to an armed insurgency in the 1988-’89 period opposing the Indo-Lanka Accord of 1987 that was deemed as an expression of “Indian expansionism”.

The party’s well-known ‘five classes’ (‘panthi paha’) used to include one lesson to new entrants to the party on the threat of Indian expansionism in Sri Lanka. However, the lesson on Indian expansionism was reviewed and removed from the party’s initiation process in the early 2000s.

The party still maintained a distance from India as well as from engagements with the Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka.

It is due to these reasons that the JVP’s tour of India came as a surprise to many Sri Lankans, including the ruling party and Opposition politicians.

Building ties

The JVP under the leadership of Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) has so far seen many policy changes, including being more inclusive. Until then, the party had maintained a somewhat exclusive approach in its policies and politics.

It is in such a backdrop that about two years ago, a close confidant of AKD had asked him what the JVP’s stance was on India and if the JVP was open to engage with India. Upon being informed by AKD that the JVP was willing to engage with India since Sri Lanka could not function without engaging with the regional superpower, India, the discussion had resulted in the JVP and AKD commencing a new dialogue with India through the Indian High Commission in Colombo. The High Commissioner at the time was Gopal Baglay.

It was the JVP’s Vijitha Herath who had been assigned the task of initiating a fresh dialogue with the Indian High Commission in Colombo. The individual who had discussed with AKD about the JVP’s stance on India had then made the introductions between a senior official at the High Commission office in Colombo and Herath.

Herath had gradually introduced the key figures in the JVP and the National People’s Power (NPP) to the Indian side. Since then, the JVP and the Indians have engaged in many discussions with Baglay, including a meeting with AKD last year.

It was after these meetings that Baglay and his team in Colombo looked at getting the JVP leaders to India for further engagements in New Delhi. By then, the Indian High Commission was engaged in a programme to strengthen people-to-people ties between Sri Lanka and India.

However, the visit was finalised by the new High Commissioner to India Santosh Jha. It is important to note that the JVP’s visit to India was part of a programme that was launched around two years ago.

Invite to India

Accordingly, the JVP delegation led by AKD that included NPP MP Vijitha Herath, NPP Secretary Dr. Nihal Abeysinghe, and NPP Executive Committee member Prof. Anil Jayantha left Sri Lanka on Monday (5) and was in India for five days attending meetings.

The delegation visited three cities – New Delhi, Ahmedabad, and Thiruvananthapuram – and held meetings with Government officials and members of the business community, in addition to visiting centres of excellence in agriculture and industry.

The JVP’s visit was viewed by many in Sri Lanka as a recognition of AKD as a national leader by the Indians.

Key meetings

Once in India, AKD and the team first met with India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.

Jaishankar wrote on the social media platform X that they “also spoke about Sri Lanka’s economic challenges and the path ahead. India, with its ‘Neighbourhood First’ and ‘Security and Growth for All in the Region’ policies, will always be a reliable friend and trusted partner of Sri Lanka.”

On Monday afternoon, AKD met with India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval at the Sardar Patel Bhavan. The discussion was focused on the regional security and bilateral ties between Sri Lanka and India.

On Monday evening, AKD and the NPPers met Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra at the Taj Mansingh Hotel. The NPP delegation then headed for Gujarat, which is the home base of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Afterwards, the delegation visited the Communist Party-led state of Kerala.

The Chinese factor

However, the timing of the Indian invite for the JVP leaders’ visit has become a widely-discussed topic in many circles in the country.

It is evident that India, which is entering election mode, with every likelihood of Prime Minister Modi returning to power, is looking at further consolidating its position in the region.

India’s engagement with Sri Lanka is also being looked at in this mode and the invitation to the JVP has sent two key messages – one to Sri Lankan politicians including President Wickremesinghe, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa, and all other politicians and the other to the Chinese.

The JVP, which is known for its pro-China approach, will now have to face a doubtful Chinese side. 

The JVP tour of India is also indicative of the manner in which the Indians address geopolitical concerns.

NPP challenged

While the JVP/NPP leaders were engaged in the Indian tour, a motion was filed before the Supreme Court by civil activist Nagananda Kodituwakku challenging the registration of the NPP, led by AKD, as a political party by the Election Commission.

The motion was filed when the writ petition filed against the Election Commission’s decision to reject the registration of the Vinivida Foundation as a political party was taken up for consideration.

In his petition, Kodituwakku had noted that it was a violation of the law to register the NPP as a separate political party as it was a part of the JVP, which was already a registered political party.

However, the NPP has dismissed Kodituwakku’s claim.

Namal in India

On the final day of the NPP’s tour in India, SLPP MP Namal Rajapaksa and his wife Limini made their way to India as well.

Namal and his wife engaged on a two-day private tour where the main focus was on them worshipping at the newly-opened Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

SJB feeling sidelined

The invitation by the Indian Government to the NPP has resulted in the main Opposition SJB feeling quite sidelined. Some SJBers had pointed out to the party leadership that such an invitation should have been extended to the SJB and its Leader, Premadasa, since he is also the Opposition Leader.

When SJBers felt upset over the Indian invitation to the NPP ignoring the main Opposition SJB, party seniors had explained that Premadasa had received the invitation first and the NPP had been offered the invite since the SJB Leader had been unable to allocate dates for the tour. The seniors had explained that new Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Santosh Jha wanted key party leaders in Sri Lanka to meet with Indian officials and had extended an invitation to the SJB leadership.

Nevertheless, it is evident that the SJBers including their seniors are unaware of the fact that the NPP’s Indian tour was mooted during High Commissioner Baglay’s tenure in Sri Lanka.

However, a group of SJBers, it is learnt, had made an unofficial request from the Indian side to present Premadasa and an SJB delegation also a State invitation to India. According to reports, the Indian side had responded favourably to the request.

More Indian tours

Following the NPP’s Indian tour, it is learnt that there are going to be several more tours of Sri Lankan political leaders to India. It is evident that the Indian Government wants to strike a balance with Sri Lankan political parties.

SLFP Leader Sirisena is expected to travel to India on a similar official tour this month after his US tour. Sirisena is also due to travel to the US on an official tour from Tuesday (13) till Thursday (15).

It is also learnt that the SJB Leader’s tour of India is likely to take place towards the end of February or in early March.

However, no dates have yet been finalised for the visits.

Sajith gets tough

SJB and Opposition Leader Premadasa has meanwhile warned of disciplinary action against those who criticise party decisions which have been approved by the Working Committee.

“There are people in the SJB who have previously scolded my parents in filth. I won’t suspend their party membership based on that,” he had said while addressing a gathering recently. If anyone criticises the party or criticises decisions taken by the Working Committee of the party, I will take disciplinary action against anyone irrespective of their positions,” he had further said, adding: “No one should call me and tell me whom I should give party membership to. I will ignore such people who try to advise me.”

However, SJB MP Field Marshal Fonseka, who recently publicly criticised the party and its leadership, has justified his actions saying that he did not have any other option but to express his grievances in public when the party seniors were making unilateral decisions. 

“When decisions are taken unitarily, and when the opportunity for discussion and discourse is not provided within the party, the only option left is to voice these grievances to the public. We should always remember that the strength of the party is its members and well-wishers and not just a select few,” Fonseka had posted on X.

“The SJB is a party many people worked hard to build. It is through sheer hard work, dedication, and commitment that the SJB was developed. The foundation of the party is based on principles and values and it is only if we uphold these values that we can further strengthen the party,” he had added.

Acting against SF

The SJB seniors have however urged the party leadership to act against SJB Chairman Fonseka in order to prevent more errant MPs in SJB ranks.

It is therefore learnt that SJB leadership is contemplating removing Fonseka from the post of SJB Chairman as well as from the Electoral Organiser post assigned to him by the party.

CBK to lead PA

Meanwhile, former Leader of the SLFP, former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga (CBK) has once again entered active politics with her new appointment as the Chairperson of the Leadership Council of the SLFP-led People’s Alliance (PA) that contests under the ‘chair’ symbol.

CBK had been appointed to the post when the Executive Committee of the PA had met on Tuesday (6) to discuss amendments to the PA Constitution.

It is learnt that the new general secretary of the PA will be appointed on 22 February.

Yapa-Lanza in PA

It is also learnt that SLPP dissidents, MPs Anura Priyadarshana Yapa and Nimal Lanza had attended the Executive Committee meeting of the PA last Tuesday.

The Yapa-Lanza alliance was launched last month with a rally in Ja-Ela and is now in the process of forming a broad alliance.

However, given that members of the Yapa-Lanza alliance, including Lanza himself, have openly expressed support for President Wickremesinghe, there’s now growing speculation on whether the new PA led by CBK will extend its support to Wickremesinghe at the Presidential Election.

It is no secret that Wickremesinghe has extended his support to Lanza and his group of SLPP dissidents to form the SLPP’s breakaway alliance much to the chagrin of SLPP seniors, especially Basil Rajapaksa.

Freedom People’s support

Meanwhile, the Freedom People’s Council (FPC) formed by another group of SLPP dissidents and led by SLPP MP Dullas Alahapperuma has noted that the group will support a presidential candidate who is agreeable to its policies.

FPC member, MP Gunapala Ratnasekera has told the media that the group will support the candidate who accepts their policies at the Presidential Election and will form an alliance with the respective party represented by the said candidate to contest the next General Election.

He had explained that fielding about 10 candidates at the Presidential Election to elect the next president would not solve the issues faced by the country and that all forces needed to be united to defeat the failed economic programme carried out by the incumbent Government.

However, the FPC has also faced a split in its rank and file, with several MPs joining the SJB, leaving a few MPs to engage in FPC politics.

‘First talk to us’

The widening divide between President Wickremesinghe and the ruling SLPP continues following the recent meeting convened by the President with the SLPP.

SLPP seniors had wanted to know how the President had called for the meeting with the SLPP and its coalition parties and had found that the meeting had been mooted and coordinated by several MPs now serving as Wickremesinghe loyalists – Chief Government Whip Minister Prasanna Ranatunga and SLPP dissident Nimal Lanza.

It is learnt that Ranatunga had also contacted SLPP senior Basil Rajapaksa, who is currently in the US, and informed of the President’s intention of having a meeting with the SLPP. Ranatunga had implied that it was a preliminary meeting Wickremesinghe was looking at holding with the SLPP and that another discussion would be held once Basil returned to the country. Basil had then informed SLPP General Secretary Sagara Kariyawasam to attend the meeting convened by the President.

However, the issue over the meeting had started when SLFP MP Minister Mahinda Amaraweera had informed Kariyawasam that they too would be attending the meeting with the President. “We [SLFP] will also be attending the meeting [with the President]. Lanza asked us also to come,” Amaraweera had told Kariyawasam.

Kariyawasam had then called Ranatunga and asked whether the meeting with the President was being attended by parties other than the SLPP. After informing SLPP seniors of the latest development, Kariyawasam had attended Wickremesinghe’s meeting with the intention of raising objections if members of other parties had been invited for it.

Following President Wickremesinghe’s recent meeting with the ruling SLPP and its coalition partners, a group of SLPP seniors had also discussed the meeting and have held the stance that Wickremesinghe should first hold discussions with the SLPP regarding the upcoming Presidential Election before making attempts to form political alliances with other political groups.

SLPP General Secretary Kariyawasam had told the media last week that the SLPP had never stated that it would not endorse President Wickremesinghe in a future election, as reported by the media, yet urged the President to discuss matters related to the elections first with the SLPP separately in order to reach a consensus between the two parties, namely, the President and the SLPP.

UNP’s weekend meetings

The United National Party (UNP) led by President Wickremesinghe meanwhile is to hold a series of discussions and meetings this weekend on the party’s preparations for the upcoming Presidential Election.

The UNP is also slated to meet around six parties including political parties, civil society organisations, and trade unions today (11) to discuss several matters including the Presidential Election.

UNP General Secretary Palitha Range Bandara has said that while the UNP has not started official discussions on the Presidential Election with any party, unofficial discussions with various groups are underway and that President Wickremesinghe has built a good relationship with several such interested parties.

Ideological split

The main political party representing the northern and eastern Tamils – the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) – is continuing to face an internal battle over ideological clashes. New ITAK Leader S. Shritharan’s hardline stance on addressing the demands of the Tamil people has now resulted in the more moderate-thinking Tamil politicians forming a separate group under the leadership of Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP M.A. Sumanthiran.

TNA MP in Uganda

An interesting detail about a TNA MP attending the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit that was recently held in Kampala, Uganda has now come to light.

TNA MP Selvam Adaikalanathan had been in Uganda during the NAM summit. Adaikalanathan had not been part of the President’s official delegation, but had been with millionaire Tamil businessman and a key figure among the Tamil diaspora, Allirajah Subaskaran.

Adaikalanathan had however met with members of the President’s delegation where they had discussed about the political situation in Sri Lanka, especially the changes taking place in the Tamil political scene after a new leader had taken charge of the ITAK.

Adaikalanathan had noted that everyone in ITAK would support ITAK Leader Shritharan and work towards winning the aspirations of the Tamil people.

Allirajah ignored

Meanwhile, Allirajah had made several attempts to meet with President Wickremesinghe during his Ugandan visit. However, the President, it is learnt, had avoided meeting with Allirajah.

Finally, Allirajah had tried to meet with Wickremesinghe during the dinner hosted for the President by Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Uganda V. Kananathan. Upon hearing that Allirajah had asked to attend the Ambassador’s dinner, President Wickremesinghe had said that he did not have an issue with Allirajah attending the meeting, but that there could not be any business-related discussion.

It is learnt that the President had told several of his confidants that Allirajah had spoken a lot about business ventures in Sri Lanka and getting the diaspora to invest in the country but that there were no visible signs of such activities taking place in the country in reality.

However, there are also reports that indicate that Allirajah has taken over a political party. Reports further state that the party is named the Arunalu People’s Party and its symbol is the tap.

Another face enters

While Allirajah’s commitment to invest in Sri Lanka and get the other members of the diaspora to also invest in the country has been put to the test by President Wickremesinghe, another businessman representing the Tamil diaspora has started to come out in the public arena.

It is none other than one Netherlands-based Baskaran Kandiah, who heads the telecommunication company Libera. He also owns a media network in London that included IBC TV of London.

It is learnt that Baskaran and a group of diaspora members are looking at supporting ITAK’s Shritharan in his new quest for a federal solution to address the aspirations of the Tamil people in the Northern and Eastern Provinces.

Wigi’s support

Former Chief Minister of the Northern Province MP C.V. Wigneswaran has meanwhile hinted at the possibility of him extending support to President Wickremesinghe when he had told a group of reporters that of the current leaders Wickremesinghe seemed to be the only one who could work with the Tamils.

He had further noted that the President had briefly spoken to him in Parliament last Wednesday, but refused to divulge the details.

Wigneswaran had also criticised the main Opposition SJB for walking out of Parliament when the President was speaking, saying that protesting would not solve the issue at hand.