COLOMBO: The High Commission of India in Colombo on Monday dismissed reports New Delhi was sending troops to Sri Lanka, after tens of thousands stormed the official residences of the nation’s president and prime minister, enraged by the island’s worst economic crisis in decades.
Sri Lanka barely has any dollars left to import fuel, which has been severely rationed, with long lines in front of shops selling cooking gas. Headline inflation hit 54.6 percent last month, and the central bank has warned that it could rise to 70 percent in the coming months.
Nationwide protests against the economic woes reached new heights on July 9, as thousands of people marched to Colombo and stormed the homes of the president and prime minister, forcing the country’s leadership to announce resignations.
Reports of India sending its troops to the island nation swirled in the media after a dramatic day, prompting the Indian Embassy in Colombo to issue a statement.
“The High Commission would like to categorically deny speculative reports in sections of the media and social media about India sending her troops to Sri Lanka,” the High Commission of India in Colombo said on Monday. “These reports and such views are also not in keeping with the position of the Government of India.”
The Indian Embassy in Colombo had issued a similar statement in May, after reports of New Delhi sending troops surfaced online following deadly clashes in Colombo that eventually led to the resignation of former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.
India, Sri Lanka’s only immediate neighbor, has been its principal source of foreign assistance during the crisis, providing more than $3.8 billion in credit lines, swaps and aid for the island nation.
Sri Lanka occupies a “central place” in India’s foreign policy for South Asia, foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said on Sunday. “We continue to closely follow the recent developments in Sri Lanka. India stands with the people of Sri Lanka.”
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said he would step down on July 13, according to an announcement made by the Parliament speaker, while Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe announced he would leave office when a new government was formed.
Sri Lankans were still occupying the president and premier’s buildings as of Monday, with protest leaders vowing to stay until both Rajapaksa and Wickremesinghe officially resign.
As the political and economic turmoil continues, Jehan Perera, executive director of the National Peace Council of Sri Lanka, said India should help ensure that democratic rights to protest were upheld.
“India should continue to support Sri Lanka economically as it has been doing very generously,” Perera told Arab News. “It must ensure that the democratic rights of the people are respected including the right to protest against a failed government.”
The events in Sri Lanka should also serve as a warning to the island nation’s neighbors, the analyst added:
“Sri Lanka is giving an advance warning to neighboring countries and to the world about the need for accountability and checks and balances in governance.”
