The new Government in Colombo should always remember that India is its real friend

How the mighty fall! Members of the Rajapaksa family, who ruled Sri Lanka with impunity not long ago, are either hiding in the country or trying to flee it. Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation as Sri Lankan President and its acceptance by the Speaker of Parliament should be the beginning of the end of the political and economic crisis in the island nation. At least, we can hope so with the exit of the dynasty. We also hope that the dynasty does not attempt a rearguard action which could have calamitous consequences for the country. Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena has reportedly said that a new President will be elected within seven days in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution. Meanwhile, Prime Minister and Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe has been sworn in as the Interim President. It is yet to be seen how the protesters regard Wickremesinghe — as a representative of ancient regime or a post-Rajapaksa leader who is an agent of change. It needs to be mentioned here that it was Gotabaya Rajapaksa who had appointed him as Prime Minister in the wake of brother Mahinda Rajapaksa’s resignation in May. Further, in his capacity as the Acting President, he had clamped curfews after protesters stormed his office. It is another matter that the crowds nonetheless celebrated President Gotabaya’s resignation. Once the new President is elected, he or she would appoint a new Prime Minister, but this has to be cleared by Parliament.

The new dispensation would be well-advised to adopt an accommodative approach in all matters. First off, it should suppress the impulse to seek revenge for the untold misery the country had to face; the guilty should be brought to book for criminal acts, not for taking and implementing wrong decisions. The ban on chemical fertilisers and white-elephant infrastructure projects are such decisions; those responsible for them should be penalised only if mens rea is involved. With a criminal intent, these were just stupid decisions; and if stupidity is punished, lots of politicians will end up in jail. Secondly, the new Government must treat China as what it is: the world’s most dangerous and powerful rogue State. Befriending the dragon is as dangerous as jumping from an aircraft with a malfunctioning parachute. Beijing is keen to dominate the entire world; the Belt and Road Initiative, aggressively promoted by the Chinese, is aimed at achieving that end. Sri Lanka is one of the many nations that have been ensnared into a debt trap. New Delhi has always been cautioning Colombo against the latter’s engagements with Beijing, but Sri Lankan politicians were too mesmerised by the meretricious charms of infrastructure projects to see reason, but the trap was real. Even during the crisis, while China did little to help the hapless Sri Lankans, aid from India in various forms was in excess of $3 billion. A friend in need! The new Government in Colombo should always remember that India is its real friend.