Lanka Prez election today, Ranil Wickremesinghe among 3 contestants

Tribune News Service

Sandeep Dikshit

New delhi, July 19

For the first time, Sri Lanka Parliament will directly elect a President on Wednesday from among three candidates left in the race. The fight for the President’s post has now boiled down to Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe, a rebel from Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party Dullas Alahapperuma and leftist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

A majority of ruling SLPP members were in favour of nominating Alahapperuma, who is now leading a breakaway faction. He has also received support from the Leader of Opposition Sajith Premadasa who has withdrawn from the race.

Wickremesinghe, the frontrunner, needs 113 votes in the 225-member house and is banking on the SLPP, 9 of 12 Tamil votes and defectors from Premadasa-led opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB). His closest challenger Alahapperuma needs about 25 MPs to break away from the SLPP as well as ensure that the SJB flock and some independents back him.

Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar chaired an all-party meeting on Sri Lanka during which some parties objected to the government showing slides about the poor financial condition of some Indian states.

“The lessons of Lanka are strong. There should not be a culture of freebies,” he said.

Need to take lessons from Sri Lanka crisis: EAM

• EAM S Jaishankar chaired an all-party meeting on Sri Lanka crisis on Tuesday
• He said lessons of Lanka were strong, there shouldn’t be a culture of freebies
• Some parties objected to showing of slides on poor fiscal condition of some Indian states

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