Sri Lanka crisis: Defence Ministry orders tri-forces to open fire on rioters
Colombo, May 10: Sri Lanka's Ministry of Defence on Tuesday ordered the Army, the Air Force and the Navy personnel to open fire on anyone looting public property or causing harm to others amidst violent protests in the island nation over the unprecedented economic crisis.
The order came after embattled President Gotabaya Rajapaksa urged people to stop "violence and acts of revenge" against fellow citizens and vowed to address the political and economic crisis facing the nation.
The death toll rose to eight in the unprecedented violence that erupted after supporters of then prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa attacked anti-government protesters here on Monday. Though Mahinda Rajapaksa, 76, has quit as prime minister, this has failed to bring calm.
Nearly 250 people have been injured in the violence in Colombo and other parts of the country.
The Ministry of Defence has ordered the tri-forces to open fire on anyone looting public property or causing harm to others, the Daily Mirror newspaper quoted the Army Spokesman as saying.
A curfew is in force across the island nation after mobs burned down the ancestral home belonging to the ruling Rajapaksa family amid mounting anger at the worst economic crisis.
Anti-government protesters have also set up a checkpoint on the road leading to the Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo to prevent the Rajapaksa family loyalists from fleeing the country.
Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since gaining independence from Britain in 1948.
The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices.
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Two women from Telangana die in road accident in US
Hyderabad (PTI): Even death could not separate two childhood friends from Telangana, who lost their lives in a road accident in the United States.
The victims, Meghana Rani and K Bhavana, both aged 24 and natives of Mahabubabad district, died in a car accident in Bishop City, California, at around 3 am (IST) on Monday, while they were on a tour, according to information received by their family members.
"They were classmates in school, during their BTech and later during their Master’s studies in the US," Meghana’s cousin Mani Kumar told PTI.
After completing engineering from a private college in Hyderabad, the two went to the US in 2022 and completed their MS degrees there, he said, adding that they were currently looking for jobs.
According to him, friends in the US informed the families about the accident.
BRS Rajya Sabha member Vaddiraju Ravichandra expressed grief over the deaths.
He spoke to the parents of the deceased and assured them that he would take up the matter with the concerned officials to facilitate the return of the mortal remains, according to a press release.
Bhavana’s father, Kadiyala Koteswara Rao, is the Upa Sarpanch of Mulkanoor village, while Meghana’s father, Prallakhandam Venkata Nageswara Rao, runs a ‘Mee Seva’ citizen service centre as a franchisee, the release added.
