Colombo: The death toll in the ongoing conflict in Sri Lanka has risen to eight following the financial crisis. More than 200 people were injured in the violence in Colombo and other cities. Mahinda Rajapaksa, 76, resigned as Sri Lanka’s prime minister on Monday amid a financial crisis. His followers then attacked anti-government protesters. Later, President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa imposed a nationwide curfew. Troops have been deployed in the capital as part of efforts to restore peace.
The people set fire to the homes of several politicians and the ancestral home of the Rajapaksas in Hambantota. The house of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and his younger brother and president, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, was set on fire in the violence in Medamulana, Hambantota.
Protesters also set fire to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa’s residence in Kurunegala. The DA Rajapaksa monument erected in memory of the fathers of Mahinda and Gotabhaya at Medamulana in Hambantota was also destroyed by the mob.
Imaduwa Pradesh Sabha chairman AV Sarath Kumar was killed in an attack on his residence on Monday. Kumaran (63) was admitted to the hospital following a heart attack. One person has been killed in an attack on a prominent hotel in Negombo. Multiple luxury cars worth lakhs of rupees were completely destroyed. SLPP MP Amarakeerthi Athukorala and his security guard were killed in the attack on Monday.
The Colombo National Hospital said 217 people had been admitted for treatment. Protesters destroyed several properties belonging to ruling party ministers and legislators.
Protests have been going on since last month over soaring prices and power cuts. Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis was caused by the lack of foreign currency.
Since April 9, thousands of protesters have taken to the streets across Sri Lanka demanding the resignation of President Gotabhaya and his brother Mahinda. Rising prices of essential commodities and severe shortages of fuel, medicine, and electricity have left people angry.
At a special cabinet meeting on Friday, President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa declared a state of emergency with effect from midnight on Friday. This is the second time in a month that Sri Lanka has declared a state of emergency as the island nation is reeling from its worst economic crisis.
