Dissanayake was received by Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs L Murugan, a leader of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Tamil Nadu, after he landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi.
New Delhi: With the Adani Group’s projects in Sri Lanka under focus, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the neighbouring island nation arrived in New Delhi on Sunday for his first state visit to India after taking over the helm of the government in Colombo on September 23 this year.
Dissanayake was received by Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs L Murugan, a leader of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Tamil Nadu, after he landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold bilateral talks with him on Monday when New Delhi will once again nudge Colombo to fully and effectively implement the 13th amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka to ensure the devolution of power to the local governments in its Tamil-majority Northern and Eastern Provinces of the island nation.
The 13th amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution has its roots in the agreement that New Delhi had in July 1987 signed with Colombo to protect the interests of the minority Tamils of the Indian Ocean nation. Dissanayake’s party Janatha Vimukhti Peramuna (JVP), known for its leftist nationalist ideology, opposed the agreement between Sri Lanka and India and had burnt its copies in the past.
The JVP and some other organisations floated the coalition National People’s Power in 2019. Dissanayake led the NPP in the presidential elections in Sri Lanka this year.
Though New Delhi’s support to Sri Lanka during the financial crisis helped it win back the space it had lost to Beijing in the Indian Ocean nation, India was worried about the course of the bilateral relations after Dissanayake took over the helm in Colombo.
He, however, chose New Delhi as his first foreign destination after taking over as the president of Sri Lanka.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also called on the Sri Lankan president in New Delhi on Sunday.
“Our conversations focused on strengthening Indo-Sri Lanka economic cooperation, enhancing investment opportunities, fostering regional security, and advancing key sectors such as tourism and energy. These engagements reaffirm the commitment to deepening the partnership between our two nations,” Dissanayake posted on X, after meeting Sitharaman, Jaishankar and Doval.
During my official visit to India, I had the privilege of engaging in productive discussions with Finance Minister @nsitharaman, External Affairs Minister @DrSJaishankar, and National Security Advisor Shri Ajit Doval. Our conversations focused on strengthening Indo-Sri Lanka… pic.twitter.com/A5mkZ4TS1D
— Anura Kumara Dissanayake (@anuradisanayake) December 15, 2024