With ceremonies redolent with symbolism, followed by administrative moves that sent clear messages to the public, Gotabaya Rajapaksa took office as President of Sri Lanka signalling a clarity of purpose and a no-nonsense approach to his duties that lay ahead. One of his first directives was to ensure that government institutions used the state emblem …
Nobody expects India and China to go back to the ‘Bhai-Bhai’ (friendly) days. But the two sides can or should strive at gradual easing of tension with a spirit of mutual respect and honest give and take. So far, China has shown very little of ‘give’ while piling up the list of ‘takes’ that it …
Colombo urgently needs to correct the intelligence failures that led to the Easter attacks While threats are always easier spotted in hindsight, the Easter attacks nevertheless represented a massive security failure by the Sri Lankan state. Foreign intelligence services had warned their Sri Lankan counterparts of a significant imminent attack on churches weeks before the …
As India-Pakistan slugfest over Kashmir appears set to echo at the UN General Assembly, Haji Syed Salman Chishty, scholar- saint, whose lineage goes back all the way to the Holy Prophet of Islam, sees no merit in Islamabad’s criticism of New Delhi’s decision to abrogate Art 370, a British media report said. Pakistan criticism of …
The 550th birth anniversary celebrations of founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak Dev, fall this year on 12th November; it will be a gala event at Kartarpur, Pakistan, where Guru Nanak had spent his last years in the 16th century. Hundreds of Sikhs from India are gearing up to visit Darbar Sahib Gurdwara, as the Kartarpur …
* Many experts says India’s purchase of a Russian-made S-400 air defense system last year marked a real turning point in the relations between the two countries; both sides have since taken several major steps to strengthen their cooperation. * Rosoboronexport, Russia’s only state intermediary agency for defense technology exports, has received Indian orders worth …
Sirisena government will have to overcome both domestic and international opposition from those who do not endorse the death penalty for drug trafficking. Capital punishment was previously introduced in the country in 1984, and again in 2004 but both instances were met with opposition from human rights groups and even general public. Sri Lanka’s move …
Khalistani protagonists and their ISI handlers are finding no traction, not only amongst the Sikhs in India but also amongst the Sikh Diaspora. Sikhs who have moved to the West, have worked hard to establish themselves professionally, economically and socially. Trouble free life is what they want. Right side of the law is where they …
Sri Lanka plunged into a political crisis in October 2018 when President Maithripala Sirisena suddenly and unexpectedly sacked the sitting prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, his former partner in the National Unity Government formed in January 2015. It could not have come at a worse time for the Sri Lankan economy. In a peculiar turn of …
Sri Lankan economy suffers from twin deficits – trade deficit as exports are in decline, and budget deficit. The country is also battered by global crisis. So it needs a dose of IMF aid Presenting his annual economic “road map” for 2019, Central Bank governor Indrajit Coomaraswamy called on the Sri Lankan government last …