Uni students acted like terrorists - Rajitha
June 28, 2017 03:24 pm
According to the political view of Vladimir Lenin, the manner how university students acted during a recent protest at the Health Ministry premises makes them terrorists, a minister said Wednesday.
“In his book, ‘Left-Wing Communism: An Infantile Disorder’, Lenin cited those with such behavior as terrorists,” minister Rajitha Senaratne told reporters in Colombo.
Under the circumstance, the minister also questioned what would have been an appropriate way to disperse the protesting crowd.
“We could not wait until they torch the building,” he added.
The situation erupted as the students protesting against the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM) entered into the Health Ministry premises on May 24. The police baton-charged the protesters and used water cannons to disperse the crowd.
The minister too criticized the remarks of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa regarding the attack on university students.
“He may have condemned the attack because we did not order to shoot the protesting crowd,” he said. Recalling the controversial attack on the protesters during a demonstration in Rathupaswala, Rajitha said, “He may have asked why we did not follow his steps.”
Meanwhile, Minister Gayantha Karunathilaka has stated that the government will take over the SAITM after the institution settles the outstanding loan debt and that may take at least 10-years.