INR as currency for trade settlements:
National Freedom Front (NFF) leader Wimal Weerawansa has accused President Ranil Wickremesinghe of trying to make Sri Lanka an Indian state ‘economically’ by allowing the Indian rupee (INR) to be used as a currency for trade settlements between the two countries. If Indian and Sri Lankan Customs sign an agreement in this regard, Sri Lanka will become an Indian state, Weerawansa has warned.
Following Wickremesinghe’s visit to New Delhi, the two countries declared the move had forged stronger and mutually-beneficial commercial linkages, and agreed to operationalise India’s Unified Payment Interface or UPI based digital payments for further enhancing trade and transactions between businesses and common people.
Addressing a public rally at Bokundara, Piliyandala on Sunday (30), MP Weerawansa pointed out that President
Wickremesinghe had finalised four agreements including the one on INR ascurrency for trade settlements between the two countries without at least discussing them in Parliament.
The former Minister asked what is the purpose of having sectoral oversight committees when such far reaching decisions were taken without proper consultations.
MP Weerawansa alleged that the UNP leader was exploiting the current economic-political-social crisis to advance his personal agenda.