Tense situation in front of Sirikotha

A pandemonium broke out when a group of pro-Government protesters clashed with some UNP supporters in front of the United National Party (UNP) headquarters in Sirikotha, this morning.

The Police Media unit told Ada Derana that the clash transpired when the UNP supporters counter attacked in respond to pro-Government protesters’ alleged move to attack the Sirikotha building with stones.

A party source said that a meeting accompanied by Common Candidate Maithripala Sirisena and Opposition Leader Ranil Wickramasinghe was being held with the participation of some 1,500 members of several trade unions, at the time of the incident.

In the meantime, the pro-Government protesters were holding a demonstration in front of the UNP headquarters against an alleged secret agreement which was signed by Maithripala and Wickramasinghe, on 1 November.

At least 11 people who sustained injuries following the clash have been admitted to the Colombo Southern hospital, the police said.

At a recent press conference, Health Minister Tissa Attanayake alleged, in addition to the agreements reached with various political parties and organizations in public, Maithripala Sirisena has also signed the secret agreement with the Opposition Leader, which contains several terms that could be harmful to the country.

However, the UNP charged that the alleged agreement was a ‘fake’ one. Opposition Leader has also urged the IGP to initiate an investigation, on this regard.