Lankan President phones Modi to deny he said India is involved in assassination plot
Posted on October 17th, 2018
Courtesy NewsIn.Asia
Colombo, October 17 (newsin.asia): The President of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena called Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the telephone on Wednesday, to categorically reject reports in sections of the media about him alluding to India’s involvement in any manner in an alleged plot to assassinate him and the former Defense Secretary of Sri Lanka Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.
The Lankan President said that the mischievous and mala-fide reports were utterly baseless and false and seemed intended to create misunderstanding between the two leaders as well as damage the relations between the two friendly countries.”
President Sirisena apprised the Indian Prime Minister of the urgent steps being taken by him personally and the government of Sri Lanka, to publicly reject these false reports.
In this context Sirisen also recalled his meeting with the High Commissioner of India earlier in the day.
The Lankan President also stated that the he regards the Indian Prime Minister as a true friend of Sri Lanka and also as a close personal friend.
Sirisena stressed that he greatly values” the mutually beneficial ties between India and Sri Lanka, and remains steadfast on working with the Indian Prime Minister for further strengthening the ties.”
Modi’s Reaction
The Indian Prime Minister appreciated the prompt steps taken by the Sri Lankan President and his government to firmly refute the malicious reports by publicly clarifying matters.”
Prime Minister Modi reiterated India’s emphasis on following the Neighborhood First policy” and the priority the Government of India and he personally attach to developing even stronger all round cooperation between the two countries.
The Issue
Explaining the background to the controversy, a press release from the Presidential Media Division (PMD) said that at the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, there were discussions on the alleged plot to assassinate President Sirisena and former Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.
The President, who chaired the meeting, emphasized the need to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the alleged assassination plot.
In these circumstances, it is very unfortunate that some parties with vested interests resort to spreading malevolent manipulations detrimental to the existing good relations between the two countries as well as the excellent personal rapport between the two leaders.”
India and Sri Lanka have maintained cordial relations and cooperation since the inception of this government. Several highest level visits have taken place between the two nations that have resulted in strengthening cooperation in many fields, the press release noted.
The High Commissioner of India Taranjit Singh Sandhu called on the President on Wednesday in which all matters were clarified and good bilateral relations were reassured,” the release added.
(The featured image at the top shows Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena talking to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the phone on Oct 17,2018)
October 17th, 2018 at 3:11 pm
Aiyo Sirisena chickened out Cowardly.
ඔබ තුමාගේ රෙද්ද ගැලවිලා හෙලුවෙන් නේද?
October 17th, 2018 at 3:45 pm
There you go ! Real Sirisena this is ! ” India is our friend , how could by good friend plot to kill me ?”, Sirisena says sorry. This guy is mental, not even worth to be a Gramasevaka.
October 17th, 2018 at 3:55 pm
Sirisena as usual has no stand.
But Modi’s plan is clear. He invited TNA, Mahinda and UNP leaders in successive months and plans to oust Sirisena. By whatever means Sirisena saved Colombo East Port Terminal, Palali airstrip, Trincomalee port, etc. from Ranil’s plan to sell to India.
India’s “Neighborhood First policy”! What a joke.
October 17th, 2018 at 7:19 pm
He is the modern day’s proverbial “Pin Hami” of “Hath Pana”.
Now to please Modi he will give the East Port Terminal to India.
Indians have their master policies in place. Modi or no Modi, they will go with those policies. Only in SL the foreign policy is changing with the change of government.
Our country is like a street prostitute. Anyone can come here and do anything they want. Every Western country is waiting to tell us how to eat, how to sleep and how to think. Are we an orphanage?
We are boasting of our intellectuals and higher literacy rate in Asia, but not a single bastard who have gone to the Parliament has pushed for national policies in education, foreign affairs etc.
As someone was suggesting in this space, the entire 225 in Diyawanna dungeon must be destroyed along with the buildings.
At least save from their salaries. (But their spouses will get the pensions)
Not only this lot. There are many others in the Provincial councils. These are pests and parasites.
October 17th, 2018 at 9:11 pm
Sirisena seems to have urinated in his pyjamas once he came to know The Hindu has reported his heroic statement.
Patriots, just imagine if he was on the driving seat during the last stage of the war in 2009.
He would be pleasing Miliband and the gang day and night..
October 17th, 2018 at 9:18 pm
My ideas are similar to those expressed in the above comments: I.O. Sirisena is apparently trying to chicken out of a 2015 pledge he made to India for handing over the east terminal of the Colombo port. It is also probable that he wants to belatedly dissociate himself from the RAW plot (hatched under the auspices of the powers that be) to kill off Gota and MR (and the latter’s family for good measure) for they are the greatest obstacle to India having its way with its southern neighbor at the moment. Of those invited by India, only MR can be trusted not to betray Sri Lanka’s national interest just for the sake of regaining power. Now that the plot has come to light and that the Indian government is complicit, it can be suspected that I.O. Sirisena has been aware of it from the beginning. The inclusion of his name in the assassin’s list is a sham to mislead the public and the world. Now, under growing domestic public pressure on the yahapalanya regime on account of its insane policy of selling off national assets for mere day-to-day survival, he would rather unilaterally dishonor his 2015 pledge to India. The coward that he is, he’s begun pussyfooting. That’s why he has posthaste called back his counterfart/I mean, Modi, not Indian prez) contradicting what he said to his cabinet.
The harassed people of Sri Lanka have only one demand to make of Sirisena and Ranil: Dissolve parliament now and elect a new parliament in order to regain and reassert their lost national sovereignty.