Colombo: In the context of the strengthening of the people’s struggle in Sri Lanka, the country’s President Gotabaya Rajapakse left the country and fled to the Maldives.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa left Sri Lanka with his wife in a military plane this morning. He is accompanied by two bodyguards.
Confirmed reports suggest that he reached Maldives and took refuge in a secret place. He has also been given police protection.
What happened so far? – Following the economic crisis in Sri Lanka, people have been holding a series of protests since last March, and intensified the protest by entering the official residence of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa last Saturday.
But President Gotabaya, who had left the residence before that, was said to be safe at the army headquarters. Speaker of the House of Parliament, Mahinda Yaba Abeywardana, has announced that President Gotabaya will resign today (July 13) after the people’s protest intensified.
Following this, the opposition parties have accelerated the steps to form a coalition government. It has been reported that the election to elect the new president of the country will be held on the 20th. The opposition parties are continuously negotiating in this regard.
After Gotabaya Rajapaksa steps down today, Parliament Speaker Abeywardana is likely to be appointed as interim President.
In this case, it was reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa left before the protesters entered his mansion and hid in a secret room at the Sri Lankan Naval Base.
Meanwhile, the day before yesterday, Basil Rajapaksa, younger brother of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, tried to escape to Dubai by plane from Sri Lanka. He served as Finance Minister in Mahinda Rajapaksa’s cabinet.
He arrived at Colombo International Airport last night after planning to flee to Dubai by Emirates flight. Airport officials and protestors spotted Basil Rajapaksa fleeing despite wearing a face mask and stopped him. The protesters who stopped him imprisoned Basil Rajapaksa at the airport.
Meanwhile, there was also a report that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was planning to escape by sea. Reports spread that he was trying to escape by sea to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, as the airport was overcrowded and protestors gathered there.
For this, information was leaked that Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his relatives arrived in the Trikonamalai region last Saturday by a huge boat belonging to the navy from the area near the Trikonamalai sea, and from there they came to the Colombo International Airport by helicopter.
Meanwhile, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has said that he will not step down from the presidency until he and his family leave safely. President Gotabaya, who had announced till yesterday morning that he would resign on July 13 (today), suddenly made this announcement yesterday evening.
Petition in the Supreme Court: Meanwhile, a petition has been filed in the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his younger brother Basil Rajapaksa should be temporarily banned from traveling abroad.
Denial of Visa: President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had applied for a visa to stay in the United States. But due to the ongoing people’s protest in Sri Lanka, the US government denied that the visa requested by Gotabaya would not be granted.
It is against this background that Gotabaya Rajapaksa has now taken refuge in the Maldives. He is expected to resign from his presidency today.