Basil Rajapaksa Dubai move blocked, Ranil still has Presidential ambitions
With the Rajapaksa clan still clinging to power, the task of restoring peace and economic recovery in Sri Lanka becomes very difficult and is a matter of concern in New Delhi. The political flux in Sri Lanka continues with former finance minister Basil Rajapaksa, the youngest brother of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, blocked from boarding an Emirates flight to Dubai on Monday evening as protestors surrounded the Colombo international airport. According to diplomatic sources in Colombo, Basil, who holds dual citizenship of the US and Sri Lanka, was en route to Dubai but was not cleared by the immigration under pressure from the protestors who surrounded the airport. The protestors have currently put-up check posts to ensure that none of the political leaders especially the Rajapaksa clan are allowed to flee the country. Basil’s elder brothers Mahinda and Gotabaya are both under security protection in Colombo with the latter to resign from the post of President tomorrow. At an all-party m...