PM Modi congratulates Sri Lanka's Mahinda Rajapaksa over successful conduct of polls

Prime Minister Narendra Modi dialed his Sri Lankan counterpart Mahinda Rajapaksa late on Thursday and congratulated him on the successful conduct of parliamentary elections a day earlier. PM Modi commended the government and electoral institutions of Sri Lanka for effectively organising elections despite constraints of the Coronavirus pandemic.

PM Modi appreciated the Sri Lankan people for their enthusiastic participation in the elections, and said that this reflected the strong democratic values shared by both countries, a statement from the MEA said. He noted that the incoming results of the elections indicate an impressive electoral performance by Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party.

Recalling their cordial and fruitful previous interactions, the two leaders reiterated their shared commitment to strengthen the age-old and multi-dimensional India-Sri Lanka relationship. PM Modi informed Rajapaksa about the establishment of an international airport in the Buddhist pilgrimage city of Kushinagar in India and said that the city looked forward to welcoming visitors from Sri Lanka at an early date. 

The leaders agreed to remain in close touch as both countries address the challenges posed by COVID-19 pandemic, and resolved to take bilateral relations to newer heights in the coming days.

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Polls in Sri Lanka

More than 16 million people were eligible to vote to elect 196 lawmakers, with the rest being named from a national list according to the number of votes received by each party or independent group. The election was originally scheduled for April but was twice postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sri Lanka has largely contained the spread of the virus with 2,834 confirmed cases including 11 deaths. Counting starts Thursday and the final results are expected Friday.

At least four members of the family were running in the parliamentary election, and strong support for the Rajapaksas' party could add to their political dynasty.

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