City
Epaper

Man ends life in front of Sri Lankan President's house over power cuts

By ANI | Updated: April 3, 2022 19:05 IST

A 53-year-old man committed suicide in front of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's house in Mirihana.

Open in App

A 53-year-old man committed suicide in front of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's house in Mirihana.

He had climbed on a live transformer after calling for an immediate end to the power cuts, Daily Mirror reported.

It further reported that police said he was intoxicated at the time of the incident.

Moreover, ahead of an "Arab Spring" style protest scheduled to be staged on Sunday, a nationwide curfew has been declared by Sri Lanka.

An island-wide curfew has been declared from 6 pm this evening (Saturday) to 6 am on Monday, reported Colombo Gazette.

A major protest is scheduled to take place today against the Sri Lankan Government amid an economic crisis in the country.

The island nation is facing an unprecedented economic crisis. Sri Lanka's economy has been in a free fall since the COVID-19 pandemic due to the crash of the tourism sector.

Sri Lanka is presently facing a foreign exchange shortage which has led to a food, fuel, power and gas shortage and has sought the assistance of friendly countries for economic assistance.

Sri Lanka is witnessing at least 13-hour daily power cuts. Sri Lanka's currency has been also devalued by almost SLR 90 against the US dollar since March 8.

Some had claimed the protest will be similar to the Arab Spring protests in the Arab world, reported Colombo Gazette.

The Arab Spring was a series of anti-government protests, uprisings, and armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in response to corruption and economic stagnation and was first started in Tunisia.

From Tunisia, the protests then spread to Libya, Egypt, Yemen, Syria, and Bahrain, where either the ruler was deposed or major uprisings and social violence occurred including riots, civil wars, or insurgencies.

Sustained street demonstrations took place in Morocco, Iraq, Algeria, Iranian Khuzestan, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, and Sudan. Minor protests took place in Djibouti, Mauritania, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, and Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara.

( With inputs from ANI )

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor

Tags: IraqJordanColombo GazetteDaily mirrorYana mirThe mirror
Open in App

Related Stories

InternationalIraq Resumes Oil Exports via Kurdish Pipeline Amid West Asia War and Supply Crisis

InternationalUSA-Israel-Iran War: US KC-135 Refuelling Aircraft Crashes in Iraq During Operation Epic Fury, Rescue Mission Underway

InternationalUS-Israel Attack Iran: Indian Crew Member Killed After US-Owned Oil Tanker Attacked Near Basra Coast

FootballFIFA World Cup 2026 Playoffs: Iraq’s Participation in Doubt as Middle East Conflict Escalates

MumbaiSpiceJet Launches Special Non-Stop Flights from Mumbai and Ahmedabad to Najaf, Becoming the First Indian Airline to Offer Direct Service

International Realted Stories

InternationalIranian President confirms Tehran's participation in talks with US in Islamabad

InternationalIndia withdraws its proposal to host COP33 in 2028

InternationalPope Leo XIV hails US-Iran truce as "sign of deep hope" after "unacceptable" threats

InternationalNepal's GDP growth to slow to 2.3 pc in FY 2025–26 as fallout of West Asia conflict

InternationalIndia's growth at 7.6 pc anchors slowdown of South Asia: World Bank​