DNA Edit: Baffling move – Installation of Rajapaksa has implications for India

Just when the Indian government and analysts were celebrating the appointment of pro-New Delhi Ranil Wickremesinghe as Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister, comes the denouement. In an action described as baffling, President of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena, has suspended Parliament, deepening the political turmoil in the tiny emerald island to India’s south. In what can only be considered not too happy an augury for India, the man returning as Prime Minister is Mahinda Rajapaksa. Even though Ranil Wickremesinghe’s party had the largest number of seats, it lost its majority when in the highest tradition of South Asian politics, the President’s United Peoples’ Freedom Alliance walked out of the coalition leaving his government short of numbers. The more important aspect of the changes, which New Delhi describes as a `wait and watch’ situation, is the role of Big Brother China, which was not too amused with the attitude of Prime Minister Wickremesinghe, who among other things, was raising questions about Chinese investment and control over the Hambantota port. Wickremesinghe, regarded as close to India, is known to have raised several issues with Beijing, leading to signs of irritation from the big dragon. New Delhi must watch Rajapaksa with some trepidation. He is known to change colours, as politicians do, and last year his son MP Namal Rajapaksa was arrested for organising a protest outside the Indian consulate at Hambantota. While diplomats here rule out any major change in policy, there is a lingering feeling that Wickremesinghe would have been a better bet than Rajapaksa, as far as India is concerned.