State of Emergency in Sri Lanka as President flees without resigning: 10 facts
India Today
Protesters, angered by skyrocketing prices of essential items and uncontrollable inflation for months, spilled onto the streets demanding the resignation of their president and prime minister.
Sri Lanka is scrambling to deal with the escalating crisis in the nation that is witnessing widespread protests, arson, and loot. Protesters, angered by skyrocketing prices of essential items and uncontrollable inflation for months, spilled onto the streets demanding the resignation of their president and prime minister.
Leaders who attended an emergency meeting called by the Speaker this evening demanded that Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe resign his post and also step down as the acting president. The Speaker should take charge as the interim president, they demanded.
The protests took a violent turn last Saturday, when the demonstrators stormed the homes and offices of the president and the prime minister and set their homes on fire. Thousands gheraoed the presidential palace, while videos showed many of them taking a swim in the pool inside the premises, holding wrestling matches on the president’s bed and cooking food in the kitchen.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country today without resigning his post.
Also Read: | How Sri Lanka spiraled into crisis | Explained