Tag Archives: lanka

Prime Minister Modi commended the government and the electoral institutions of Sri Lanka for effectively organising the elections despite the constraints of the COVID-19 pandemic. PM also appreciated the Sri Lankan people for their enthusiastic participation in the elections, and said that this reflected the strong democratic values shared by ... Read More »

He said that hand sanitisers will be used and social distancing maintained at the polling booths. The chairman said voters have already been informed that they will be allowed to use their own pens to mark their preferences. Around 1.6 crore voters will be eligible to exercise their franchise to ... Read More »

The decision was reached after a parliamentary group meeting of UNF Saturday morning and the case will be filed on Monday.  UNF and some smaller parties termed the move as illegal, unconstitutional and unacceptable.  The new governmen has sought to defend the dissolution saying President is empowered to do so. President Maithripala ... Read More »

The move comes exactly two weeks after the President has appointed Mahinda Rajapaksa as new Prime minister replacing Ranil Wickremsinghe. President sworn in ministers to the remaining cabinet posts on Friday evening before announcing the dissolution. Parliament was to convene on Wednesday and speaker Karu Jayasurya  and group led by ... Read More »

Two cabinet and five state ministers were sworn in by President Maithripala Sirisena. Three ministers were sworn in last evening. Ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremsinghe has maintained that he has the majority in the house and has demanded calling an early session to prove it. Read More »

Brother of new Prime Minister and former Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa was among three ministers sworn in by President Maithripala Sirisena. Meanwhile, Parliament Speaker Karu Jayasuriya said, an opportunity must be provided for the majority opinion on a stable government when Parliament meets next Wednesday. He said this after a meeting of ... Read More »

Manusha Nanayakkara was sworn in as a deputy Minister last week after he crossed over from Mr. Wickremsinghe party.  In a letter addressed to President, Nanayakkara said he accept Wickremsinghe as the legitimate prime minister who has majority in the house. Mr. Wickremsinghe’s United National party (UNP) while announcing the ... Read More »

In a statement, Karu Jaysurya said he will not recognize the new government until they show majority in parliament. It said new Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa will not be given the Prime Minister seat in Parliament and they will need to sit in the opposition seats. His statement came after President ... Read More »

The new ministers included one of the two MPs from the side of deposed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremsinghe who declared their support to new government. The new government under Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa is reported to have the support of 105 MPs in 225 member parliament and his side is ... Read More »

The motion signed by leader of house Laxman Kiriella, reportedly has the support of 119 MPs in 225 member parliament.  It was submitted to office of Parliament speaker and will be placed on the order book when Parliament next convenes.  However, the uncertainty over convening of Parliament continues even as ... Read More »

In a letter addressed to President Maithripala Sirisena, Jayasuriya said over 125 parliamentarians representing different parties have submitted a request to protect their privileges as members of Parliament by reconvening the Parliament. Speaker also held a party leaders meeting to discuss the future course of action. However, a government spokesman rejected ... Read More »

Rajapakse has retained the finance portfolio while Sarath Amunguma has been appointed new foreign minister. Several ministers supporting President in the earlier cabinet have retained their portfolios. However, ousted PM Ranil Wickremesinghe has demanded immediate convening of Parliament claiming he has the majority support.  Wickremesinghe called on their supporters to ... Read More »

He was sworn in late evening by President Maithripala Sirisena at his office in Colombo. Earlier, the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) led by President Sirisena has decided to leave the unity government led by Ranil Wicremsinghe. President Sirisena’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), the main constituent party of the UPFA, ... Read More »

Country’s Ports and Shipping Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe told a press conference today that respective Ministries should now present proposals seeking cabinet approval to embark on those projects. The MoU contains investment proposals by Indian companies for LNG terminal and power, port development at Colombo harbor, highways and railways etc. The ... Read More »

The protestors, carrying placards and shouting slogans, had gathered at Galle face grounds and later blocked few roads in the city to press for their demands. The workers coming from Nuwara Eliya, Badulla and several other estates are demanding that their basic daily wage be increased from existing 530 to ... Read More »

The United Nations has asked the Sri Lankan government  to immediately repatriate the commander of the country’s contingent in the UN Peacekeeping Mission in Mali. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric at the regular press briefing last night said that the U.N.  made the request to repatriate following a review of his ... Read More »

The warehouse will be constructed with an Indian grant assistance of 30 crore Sri Lankan rupees. The MoU was signed by Mr. Taranjit Singh Sandhu, High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka and Mr. K.D.S. Ruwanchandra, Secretary to Sri Lankan ministry of national policies and economic affairs.   The project envisages ... Read More »

He told CNBC on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN in Hanoi that there are a fair amount of Chinese investments and loans but he can’t see it as a threat. Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka has been unaligned and have stayed that way since 1948. His comments ... Read More »

He told CNBC on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN in Hanoi that there are a fair amount of Chinese investments and loans but he can’t see it as a threat. Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka has been unaligned and have stayed that way since 1948. His comments ... Read More »

Addressing a pre-series press conference in Colombo Saturday evening, Indian captain Mithali Raj said that her team is positive about performance on the field. She said that the series will count for ICC points and will be crucial for both the teams. The Indian captain also lauded the performance of ... Read More »