Arjuna Ranatunga's guards open fire; one dead, two injured

The political crises in Sri Lanka took an ugly turn on Sunday when bodyguards of Petroleum Minister Arjuna Ranatunga fired live rounds at the supporters of the new premier Mahinda Rajapaksa, leaving one person dead and two injured

The political crises in Sri Lanka took an ugly turn on Sunday when bodyguards of Petroleum Minister Arjuna Ranatunga fired live rounds at the supporters of the new premier Mahinda Rajapaksa, leaving one person dead and two injured. When Ranatunga, who is considered to be a loyalist of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and served as Petroleum minister under him, entered the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) building, the supporters of the new prime minister Rajapaksa shouted slogans against him.

They also objected to the cricketer-turned-politician presence at the office.

When they were not allowed to move out, shots were fired which injured three persons. One person later succumbed to his injuries. According to AFP, Ranatunga's bodyguards fired live rounds at a mob loyal to a Sirisena after the group tried to take him hostage.

Unconfirmed reports said that two of Ranatunga's security personnel have been arrested. Ranatunga is a supporter of Wickremesinghe who was sacked by President Maithripala Sirisena. Wickremesinghe, however, termed his sacking as illegal and unconstitutional.

Sirisena on Friday night sacked Wickremesinghe and appointed former President Rajapaksa to the post. He made the surprising move after his United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) withdrew from the national coalition government.

Next day, Sirisena suspended parliament till November 16 after Wickremesinghe sought an emergency session to prove his majority. A new caretaker government is expected to be sworn in on Monday.