Mahinda Rajapaksa has tendered his resignation as the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka. Curfew was imposed in Sri Lanka, which is facing economic crisis, today after clashes between supporters of Mahinda Rajapaksa and anti-government protesters. In the clashes, 5 including a ruling party MP were killed and hundreds were injured. Protesters set the Rajapaksa family and several ministers’ homes on fire.
Army personnel have been deployed in the capital Colombo after pro-government groups attacked protesters outside President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s office earlier in the day.
A police spokesman was quoted as saying by local media that curfew has been imposed across Sri Lanka with immediate effect until further notice. Army teams have been deployed at the protest site to help maintain law and order. In a special cabinet meeting on Friday, the President had declared emergency from Friday midnight. This is the second time that a state of emergency has been declared in Sri Lanka in a span of almost a month.
In the evening, the protesters again retaliated. They destroyed a memorial built for the parents of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa and set their house on fire in Hambantota, about 250 km from Colombo.
Sri Lanka is going through the most severe economic crisis ever since its independence from Britain in 1948. This crisis has mainly arisen due to the lack of foreign exchange, which means that the country is unable to pay for the import of staple food items and fuel. Thousands of protesters have been on the streets across Sri Lanka since April 9, as the government has run out of funds for imports. The prices of essential commodities are skyrocketing.
