The Indian high commission in Colombo on Tuesday dismissed 'rumours circulating on social media' that ‘certain Sri Lankan politicians and their kin’ had escaped to India. The Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka on Tuesday refuted the rumour as "fake and blatantly false", that local social media has speculated saying former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and his family members have fled to India. The statement came a day after the Sri Lankan prime minister quit his post amidst unprecedented anti-government protests and violence in which eight persons were killed. It was not immediately known which ‘political persons’ the high commission referred to in its tweet. Mahinda Rajapaksa, the now-former prime minister of the island nation resigned from the post a day ago. He is reportedly holed up at a naval base in the town north-eastern coastal town of Trincomalee. 76-year-old Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned as prime minister amid unprecedented economic turmoil in the country, hours after his supporters attacked anti-government protesters.