DailyMirror
Indian Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday stressed that a power sharing mechanism based on the Indian model where there was clear separation of power under a democratic system which was designed to preserve the unity and integrity of the country without disintegration was best suited for Sri Lanka.
Mr. Mukherjee made this point delivering the Lakshman Kadirgamar memorial lecture on Saturday.
He said the late Foreign Minister Kadirgamar’s vision drew upon the experience of the working of the Indian model. The Indian Finance Minister said the late foreign minister believed that the Indian experiment with democracy was relevant to Sri Lanka as India had chosen a democratic system which was designed to preserve the unity and integrity of the country without allowing for its disintegration. “Democracy has indeed served India well since its independence and it is the protective sheath that preserves and protects its extraordinary diversity,” he said.
He said through effective devolution of power, equal status before the Constitution, equal access before it and equal access to opportunities, India has ensured that decisive tendencies are contained and addressed in an open and democratic fashion.
“Clear separation of powers, rule of law and social justice, secularism, free press and vigilant citizens and civil groups have ensured that threats to your sovereignty from within and without are tackled with an inner strength that can come only through the ballot,” he further pointed out, indicating that the components he talked of such as clear separation of powers, rule of law and social justice and free press were important for Sri Lanka’s future.