Prime Minister Modi Congrats Wickramasinghe

By Our Special Correspondent

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated Sri Lanka’s newly-elected President Ranil Wickremesinghe and said that India will continue to be supportive of the quest of the people of the island nation for stability and economic recovery, through established democratic means, the Indian High Commission said on Tuesday.

Wickremesinghe, 73, was on Thursday sworn in as Sri Lanka’s eighth president after he was elected by lawmakers.

“PM @narendramodi sent a congratulatory letter to H.E President @RW_UNP on his election,” the High Commission of India in Colombo said in a tweet.

“PM reiterated that India will continue to be supportive of the quest of the people of Sri Lanka for stability and economic recovery, through established democratic means, institutions and constitutional framework,” it said.

The Indian government assistance to Sri Lanka has reached almost USD 4 billion since January this year.

Sri Lanka needs about USD 5 billion in the next six months to cover basic necessities for its 22 million people, who have been struggling with long queues, worsening shortages and power cuts. PTI