Ex-Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya joins anti-government protest; Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene too lend support

IANSUpdated: Saturday, July 09, 2022, 06:21 PM IST
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Sanath Jayasuriya along with the protesters on Saturday | Pic: Twitter

Former captain Sanath Jayasuriya on Saturday joined thousands of protesters in Sri Lanka's commercial capital and demanded the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa amid the worst economic crisis in the island nation.

Thousands of protesters in Colombo broke through police barricades and stormed President Rajapaksa's official residence in one of the largest anti-government marches in the crisis-hit country this year.

In the visuals, protesters, holding Sri Lankan flags and helmets were seen breaking into the President's residence, tearing down security cordons placed by police, taking a dip in the swimming pool and romping through his kitchen and home.

The 53-year-old Jayasuriya said he always stands with the people of Sri Lanka adding that the people will celebrate victory soon.

"I always stand with the People of Sri Lanka. And will celebrate victory soon. This should be continued without any violation," he tweeted along with the pictures.

"The siege is over. Your bastion has fallen. Aragalaya and people power has won. Please have the dignity to resign now ! #GoHomeGota," the cricketer said in another tweet.

Apart from Jayasurya, his former teammates Kumara Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene have also been vocal against Rajapaksa and have lent support to the agitation.

Sangakkara took to his official Twitter account to post a video of the Sri Lankan protests to express support for it, a post that Jayawardene also retweeted.

While sharing the video, Sangakkara captioned the post, "This is for our future."

"We as a country have changed direction and nothing can change that. People have spoken!! #GoHomeGota #peoplepower," tweeted Jayawardene.

Notably, Rajapaksa who was facing calls for resignation since March was using the President's House as his residence and office since protesters came to occupy the entrance to his office in early April. According to reports, Gotabaya had already vacated the premises before the protests began in Colombo.

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