New Delhi: Elections were held in Sri Lanka. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s chair was saved. Let it be said that everyone was blown away by Dissanayake’s storm. Sri Lankan President Dissanayake’s NPP secured majority in the Parliament. According to the results, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s NPP i.e. National People’s Power has achieved majority by winning 141 seats in the 225-member Parliament. Now it has been decided that there is no threat to the chair of Anura Kumara Dissanayake and he will continue to run the government in Sri Lanka comfortably. This election result means that the leftist government has strengthened its roots in Sri Lanka.
In September, Anura Kumara Dissanayake was sworn in as the new President of Sri Lanka. But he did not have majority. Therefore, immediately after taking oath as President, Anura Kumara Dissanayake dissolved the Parliament and ordered mid-term elections in November. He had decided to hold fresh elections so that there would be no hindrance in fulfilling the promise he had made. There are a total of 225 seats in the Parliament of Sri Lanka. 113 seats are required for majority in Parliament. But only on 196 seats the public elects the candidates by direct voting. In the remaining 29 seats, victory or defeat is decided on the basis of vote percentage.
Is it really a matter of concern for India?
However, now it has been decided that the government of leftist President Dissanayake will remain in Sri Lanka. So in such a situation, it is important to understand whether Dissanayake’s victory in Sri Lanka is really bad news for India and if so, then how much? Actually, 55 year old leftist leader Disayanake is famous as AKD. He is the head of the Marxist ideology Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). His party is first known for inciting anti-India sentiments in Sri Lanka. AKD i.e. Anura Kumara Dissanayake is considered close to China. Dissanayake sitting on Sri Lanka’s mattress is not at all a good sign for New Delhi’s interests in the Indian Ocean island. What will be the impact of Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s victory on India? Let us know.
Anura’s love for China is well known
Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s closeness to China is well known. AKD is considered very close to China. Dissanayake’s victory is like an opportunity for China. Because China is continuously trying to increase its presence in the country of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has already handed over the strategically important Hambantota port to Beijing on a 99-year lease. R Bhagwan Singh, who has been keeping an eye on Sri Lanka for a long time, believes that the victory of Anura Kumara Dissanayake is a challenge for New Delhi. Because the natural ally of Dissanayake-led Sri Lanka would clearly be China.
Dissanayake’s stand has been anti-India
Looking at the history of Anura Kumar Dissanayake, it can be understood that his inclination will be less towards India and more towards China. Dissanayake rose to fame during the JVP’s rebellion against the Indian Peace Keeping Force in 1987. At that time, the Indian Army had landed in Sri Lanka to eliminate LTTE i.e. Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Dissanayake’s party JVP had opposed the India-Sri Lanka Accord of 1987, which was signed by then Sri Lankan President JR Jayewardene and Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Why is Sri Lanka important for us?
Sri Lanka is very important for India because of its proximity to Tamil Nadu. There is a sizeable number of Tamils in the northern and eastern provinces of this island country, which constitute 11 percent of the total population there. The Indian government is pressurizing Sri Lanka to implement the 13th constitutional amendment. This amendment talks about power sharing with Tamils. According to the report of The Tribune, Sri Lankan Tamils fear that Dissanayake may abolish the 13th Constitutional Amendment. India and Sri Lanka have been friends of each other for decades. India has given an assistance of 4 billion dollars to Sri Lanka to overcome the economic crisis. Not only this, many stalled Indian projects have been restarted in Sri Lanka.
China will be very happy
Now there is fear that Dissanayake’s victory may pose a threat to the projects of some Indian companies in Sri Lanka. Now that Anura has strengthened his position in Sri Lanka by winning a landslide victory. In such a situation, China will be very happy with this because the leftist President will be more inclined towards the communist nation. However, it will not be so easy for Anura Kumara Dissanayake to ignore India. Even though Dissanayake’s party has an anti-India and pro-China stance, yet he cannot ignore India. This is the reason why for some time now he has reduced his anti-India rhetoric and has advocated better relations with New Delhi. Last month also he had said that Sri Lanka does not want to be sandwiched between China and India.
Now know who is AKD?
AKD i.e. Anura Kumara Dissanayake had campaigned as a candidate of ‘change’ in the Sri Lankan presidential election held in September. These elections were held for the first time since the 2022 protests following the economic crisis, which ousted the Rajapaksa clan from power. Dissanayake was born in November 1968 in Thambuttegama in Anuradhapura district. Sri Lankan President Dissanayake was born to laborer parents. Dissanayake, known as a leftist leader, was a part of student politics during his college days. He joined the party in 1987 during JVP’s anti-government movement. AKD was first elected to Parliament in 2001. He progressed through his hard work and became the presidential candidate of JVP in 2019. However, in the last elections AKD got only 3.2 percent votes.
Tags: Special Project, Sri Lanka, World news
FIRST PUBLISHED : November 15, 2024, 2:11 PM IST