The political landscape of Sri Lanka has turned red for the first time in the island nation’s history. All eyes are on the leader of the Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Anura Kumara Dissanayake, sworn-in as President on Sunday at the head of the National People’s Power (NPP) government. India will keep its fingers crossed for now, as JVP ever since its formation had been set against India and ideologically attracted to China. Dissanayake’s soft corner for China was well-known. In the present regional context, this should be a matter of concern to India. Yet, the new president’s first assertion after he took office is that he “intends to foster balanced relationships with both China and India,” and that Sri Lanka under him won’t be aligned to any side.
India had sensed what was in the making in Sri Lanka when the popularity of the JVP-led alliance rose phenomenally from a less than four per cent support in the previous polls to about 50 per cent in recent opinion surveys. The alliance campaigned against dynastic politics, the huge corruption in government and system flaws in the context of the 2022 economic meltdown, which continued to make life miserable for the common man. Notably, the alliance draws its support from the ordinary Sinhalese in the south, while the Tamils and Muslims based in the northern sector remain in the rival political camp. The JVP organised violent protests against the government in 1971 and against the India-Sri Lanka Accord on LTTE in the 1987-90 period.
Having been mindful of all these, India sought to build bridges with the JVP in recent months. Anura Dissanayake headed the party’s delegation to New Delhi for the first time in January last on an invitation from the central government. There, however, was a limit to diplomacy in view of the JVP’s marked ideological and anti-India orientations. However, Dissanayake has said Sri Lanka would require India’s support in developing its IT sector. Expectations are that he would grow beyond his ideological moorings and be pragmatic in matters of foreign relations. He would need India as much as China and the wider world, if his leadership should work to the advantage of the nation and its people. He seems to understand as much. The LTTE is dormant. It should be his endeavour to do justice to the minority Tamils and Muslims if only to create the right conditions for economic growth, peace and stability. For global Communists, this is an inspiring moment as they were generally on retreat from most of their bases. Lazy Indian Communist leaders have major lessons to learn from their Lankan comrades on how to build a mass base.
