India is not sending soldiers to Sri Lanka; Indian mission calls out fake news

Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka "strongly" denied "blatantly false and completely baseless reports in a section of media that India is dispatching its soldiers to Sri Lanka."

Anish Kumar

Colombo, First Published Apr 2, 2022, 9:03 PM IST | Last Updated Apr 2, 2022, 9:03 PM IST

India has vehemently rejected claims that New Delhi is sending its troops to Sri Lanka amidst a public emergency imposed on the tiny island nation a day ago.

Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka "strongly" denied "blatantly false and completely baseless reports in a section of media that India is dispatching its soldiers to Sri Lanka."

The High Commission also condemned irresponsible reporting and stated that it expects the concerned to desist from spreading rumours. Sri Lankan observers are of the view that there could be a Chinese hand behind the propaganda.

Aiming to prevent unrest in the country, the government has announced to impose a 36-hour curfew from Saturday 6 pm to Monday 6 am. The worst economic situation that the island nation is witnessing, has been compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic, resulting in a fall in revenue from tourism and remittances.

The country is witnessing long queues for fuel and cooking gas and major power cuts for weeks. Several economists are of the opinion that the government's mismanagement of the economy has led to the crisis. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has defended his government's actions, claiming that the foreign exchange crisis and the economic downturn were largely pandemic driven.

Also Read: Explained: Sri Lanka's 'bad economics' an opportunity for India

It must be mentioned that Sri Lanka is being ruled by a family. They all are at top posts in the government. Gotabaya Rajapaksa is the president, his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa is the Prime Minister and his younger brother Basil Rajapaksa is the Finance Minister. His eldest brother and nephew are also in the government.

According to reports, India is sending 40,000 tonnes of rice as food aid to Colombo. New Delhi has also sent another consignment of 40,000 MT of diesel. The Narendra Modi government had agreed to provide a credit line worth $1 billion to help bring down the shortage of essential items, including fuel, food and medicine.

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