Sri Lankan opposition forms alliance to contest polls

Colombo, Nov 3 : Thirteen opposition parties, including the main opposition faction, led by former prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, formed an alliance Tuesday to contest the presidential and parliamentary elections expected to be held next year.

Wickremesinghe, who is also the current leader of the opposition in parliament, formed the alliance with a breakaway party from the government led by a former minister, the main Muslim party in the country and a party representing the Tamil ethnic minority.

They planned to put forward a common presidential candidate and jointly contest the parliamentary elections.

Dates for the polls have not been announced although government sources have hinted that a presidential poll would be held in January, nearly two years before their due date. Parliamentary elections were due to follow soon after as the six-year term of parliament ends in April.

The opposition claims that President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who completes his fourth year in office this year, has decided for snap polls because his popularity is dwindling.

Under Rajapaksa's presidency, the military defeated the Tamil separatist rebel group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), in May, ending a 26-year war and raising the president's popularity. However a short time later, his public approval ratings suffered over differences with former army commander General Sarath Fonseka, who led the army against the rebels.

There has been speculation that Fonseka, who now is head of the defence staff, would mount a presidential run, backed by the Marxists JVP, the third-largest party in the country.

A Fonseka candidacy was expected to have an adverse impact on Rajapaksa.

--IANS