Fresh Protests in Colombo as Ranil Wickremesinghe Elected Sri Lankan President

Visuals from Colombo showed sloganeering and protests underway outside the Presidential Secretariat building.

Protesters shouted anti government slogans outside presidents office as the Parliament voted to elect the new president in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, July 20, 2022.

(Photo: PTI)

Protests erupted in Sri Lanka on Wednesday, 20 July after the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Ranil Wickremesinghe, was elected as the next president of the country by garnering 134 votes in Parliament.

Visuals from the island nation's capital, Colombo, showed sloganeering and protests underway outside the Presidential Secretariat building.

Wednesday's election came after weeks of a public uprising against former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the country and resigned last week.

Newswire reported that even as the election was underway in the Parliament, a silent protest was already being carried out against Wickremesinghe in front of the Presidential Secretariat.

Sri Lankans attend a peaceful sit down protest demanding the ouster of Prime Minister and Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe outside presidents office in Colombo.

(Photo: PTI)

'Back to Square One'

Expressing discontent at Wickremesinghe's victory, youth activist Anjalee Wanduragala said, "He is basically more of a Rajapaksa than the family members themselves."

"Everything we have been fighting for to get the Rajapaksas out now seem to be back to square one with Ranil Wickremesinghe in power. Our MPs have clearly shown that they don’t stand with the peoples demands. Very disappointed and afraid of what the future of Sri Lanka will look like."

Youth Activist Anjalee Wanduragala

Security men stood guard outside the Parliament building in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, 20 July, 2022.

(Photo: PTI)

Meanwhile, supporters of Wickremesinghe also celebrated in Colombo soon after the announcement.

A supporter of Acting President and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe lights firecrackers to celebrate after Wickremesinghe was elected president in Colombo

(Photo: PTI)

On 11 July, Wickremesinghe's private residence in Colombo was set on fire by protesters, hours after he announced that he will resign from his post of prime minister.

A video released by Daily Mirror on Twitter dated 10 July showed grim visuals of Wickremesinghe's charred residence and a damaged sedan, among others.

The island nation, which has been riddled with a politico-economic crisis, held a tripartite contest for the post of president. Parliamentarians cast their votes through a secret ballot on Wednesday morning.

(With inputs from Newswire and ANI.)