Resetting Indo-Lanka relations

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the country last evening and will begin a full day of engagements today to kick off his highly anticipated visit to Sri Lanka. He is undertaking the state visit from 4-6 April, at the invitation of President Anura Kumara Disanayake.

During the visit, the Prime Minister will hold discussions with the President to review progress made on the areas of cooperation agreed upon in the joint vision for “Fostering partnerships for a shared future” adopted during the Sri Lankan President’s state visit to India. The Prime Minister will also have meetings with senior dignitaries and political leaders. Modi will travel to Anuradhapura on Sunday where he will pay homage to the Sri Maha Bodhiya as well as inaugurate development projects implemented with Indian financial assistance.

Modi last visited Sri Lanka in 2019 but since then much has changed with a JVP-led Government at the helm of affairs in the country.

The National People’s Party (NPP) has been eager to get Indo-Lanka relations off to a good start under their watch. The positive overtures to India began before last September’s Presidential election with the Party making it clear that they want to be a friend to India and have the neighbour’s interests at heart, particularly when building relations with other countries which have troubled relations with India.

How an NPP Government would handle its relations with India has been debated extensively in the country as well as overseas given the JVP’s historic mistrust and hostility towards the neighbouring giant. JVP founder Rohana Wijeweera’s anti-India stance was a cornerstone of his Party’s policies with anti-Indian rhetoric and actions taking a turn for the worse in the aftermath of the signing of the Indo-Lanka Accord in 1987. President Anura Kumara Disanayake who was a university student at the time became an active member of the JVP following the signing of the Accord which heightened anti-Indian feelings in the country.

Since entering the political mainstream, the JVP has strongly opposed Indian projects in the country, derailing many. Successive Governments have had an uphill task in implementing certain Indian projects due to protests by trade unions led by the JVP but things are different now. The very people who once rallied the public against India are in power now and there is little opposition to the many projects slated to commence between the two countries.

Among the six MoUs to be inked during Modi’s visit is a defence sector agreement as well as ones related to the establishment of a high-capacity power grid interconnection between India and Sri Lanka and another for the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) project.

Underlying the positive outlook, there are several unresolved issues between the two countries. There is a growing call in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu for India to reclaim Katchatheevu Island while unauthorised fishing by Indian fishermen in Lankan territorial waters remains unresolved. These are uncomfortable topics but ones that the Government will need to address.

Securing a state visit from an Indian leader is a big deal where Sri Lanka is concerned and particularly important when a JVP-led Government is in power. It helps to dispel many of the concerns that were raised about a breakdown in relations between the two countries under a JVP Government. But those concerns seem to have been largely unfounded, at least for now.

There was a time when Sri Lankans were told to stop referring to big onions as Bombay onions and dhal as Mysore dhal amidst a call by the JVP to boycott Indian products. That was the extent of the anti-Indian sentiments then. Both countries have come a long way since then and there is hope that Modi’s visit will give fresh impetus to Indo-Lanka relations and help further consolidate relations between the two countries.