Responding to mass demonstrations in Colombo and continued calls for Sri Lanka’s President to resign, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Subramanian Swamy demands that India’s military be prepared to support the Rajapaksas.
On Twitter he stated:
both Gotabaya and Mahinda Rajapaksha were elected in a free election with thumping majority. How can India allow a mob to overturn such a legitimate election? Then no democratic country in our neighbourhood will be safe. If Rajapaksa wants India’s military help we must give
— Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) July 10, 2022
His statements follow chaotic scenes in the Sri Lankan capital where demonstrators stormed the President’s residence and burned down the home of the Prime Minister. Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe has since issued his resignation but there has been no word from the President.
The Speaker of Sri Lanka’s Parliament has claimed that the President will resign on Wednesday and that a caretaker government, formed from representatives of all parties, would take over.
Swamy has a controversial reputation as a Hindu extremist, who has frequently been accused of hate speech. In 2011, Harvard University dropped two economics courses taught by the lawmaker, following his call for only Muslims who "acknowledge that their ancestors were Hindus" be allowed to vote in India and the demolition of hundreds of mosques.
His call on the Indian military to back the Rajapaksa regime comes despite insistence from India’s High Commission in Sri Lanka that reports of India sending in troops are “not in keeping with the position of the Indian Government. The High Commission insists:
The Spokesperson of Ministry of External Affairs of India clearly stated today that India stands with the people of Sri Lanka as they seek to realize their aspirations for prosperity&progress through democratic means&values, established institutions&constitutional framework.(2/2)
— India in Sri Lanka (@IndiainSL) July 10, 2022