At the crossroads

Sri Lanka now stands on the cusp of a transformative era with the landslide victory of Anura Kumara Dissanayake's National People's Power (NPP).

- SHUTAPA PAUL

Coming on the back of an unprecedented parliamentary majority, the NPP's triumph symbolizes people's resounding rejection of traditional political dynasties and their ineffective governance. This indeed appears to be a turning point for Sri Lankan politics and society. The country's feeble economic trajectory will hopefully get a revamp under the new regime.

The NPP's rise is historic in many ways. For the first time, a party rooted in the Sinhala-majority south has broken barriers in the Tamil-dominated north. This shift suggests a rising resonance of the NPP's inclusive and reformist agenda among ethnic minorities, who have traditionally been sidelined in Sri Lanka's politics. By focusing on combating corruption, poverty alleviation, and promising structural reforms, the party has managed to transcend the identity politics that has fragmented the nation for decades.