News
Prez agrees to form interim government with new PM, cabinet: Sirisena
ECONOMYNEXT – President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has agreed to form an interim government with a new prime minister and cabinet of ministers, former president Maithripala Sirisena said on Friday (29).
Sirisena’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), which recently quit the government, had a discussion with Rajapaksa on Friday about the way forward.
“The talks were successful. The president agreed to form an interim government under a new prime minister with a new cabinet.
“They will send invitations to all parties in the coming days. The new cabinet must be small, with just 15 to 20 ministers,” said Sirisena.
The president has also agreed to appoint a National Council as proposed by the SLFP, he said at a press conference Friday afternoon.
However, reports had emerged earlier that the president had, in fact, decided not to go for an interim all party government and that Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa would continue in his role.
Meanwhile, main opposition the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) MP Harsha de Silva said Thursday (28) night that his party will support an interim all-party government only if President Gotabaya Rajapaksa steps down.
President Rajapaksa was scheduled to meet party leaders Friday morning but reports said the meeting was postponed at the last minute. However, a meeting with the SLFP parliamentary group went ahead as scheduled.
Sri Lanka’s worsening economic crisis has triggered an unprecedented political crisis amid rising public anger.
Members of the South Asian Journalists Forum have gathered at the University of New Delhi for a two day conference themed ‘Peace and Co-operation’.
Journalists from Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and India are attending the conference hosted by the University of Delhi in collaboration with the India Chapter of SJF, and will deliberate on how the media can act as a catalyst for regional stability and mutual coexsistence.
A tree plantation campaign was also held at the Ghandi Bhawan premises of the University to mark the event and symbolize growing regional ties.
The Sri Lanka delegation is led by President of SJF’s Sri Lanka Chapter Rahul Samantha Hettiarachchi.
The Governor of the of Gujarat, Acharya Devvrat, along with the Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat, Harsh Sanghvi, met with Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya on Thursdy [February 05] at the Parliamentary Complex to discuss the arrangements related to the exposition of the Devnimori Sacred Relics of Lord Buddha, which have been brought to Sri Lanka under the patronage of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Government of India.
These sacred relics of Lord Buddha were discovered during archaeological excavations conducted in the 1960s at the historic Devnimori site in Gujarat, the home state of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Until now, these relics had never been taken outside India. As a result of discussions held between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his recent visit to Sri Lanka, the people of Sri Lanka have been granted this rare opportunity to venerate these sacred relics.
The exposition of the relics is being held for a period of seven days, from February 05 to February 11, at the Gangaramaya Temple in Hunupitiya, Colombo. Discussions were held between both parties regarding the arrangements related to this event.
The discussion was attended by Samar Nanda, Joint Secretary of the Indian Ministry of Culture; Dr. Satyanjal Pandey, Acting High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka; Abhijit Halder, Director General of the International Buddhist Confederation; along with several others.
[Prime Minister’s Media Division]
The Indian Naval Ship (INS) GHARIAL made a port call in Colombo for operational turnarounds on 04 Feb 26. The Sri Lanka Navy welcomed the visiting ship in compliance with naval traditions.
Commanded by Commander Gaurav Tewari, INS GHARIAL is a vessel with a length of 124.8 meters.
During this visit, ten (10) Bailey Bridges, brought by ship, through the coordination of the High Commission of India in Sri Lanka, will be handed over to the Disaster Management Center. These bridges will provide temporary transportation links while bridges damaged across the island by adverse weather conditions are repaired.
The crew’s itinerary features scheduled goodwill activities with the Sri Lanka Navy, alongside visits to several tourist attractions across the island.
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