A day before Sri Lanka votes for the next President, Ranil Wickremesinghe, who currently occupies the post spoke to NDTV. During the interview, he spoke about his country's special bond with India and how he aims to strengthen ties,

President Ranil Wickremesinghe charted a path for Sri Lanka out of its worst financial crisis in decades, but the austerity measures that were key to this recovery may hinder his bid to return to his job in Saturday's presidential election.

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka began voting for its next president on Saturday, effectively turning the election into a referendum on the International Monetary Fund's unpopular austerity plan implemented following the country’s severe financial crisis.

The economic collapse led to severe shortages of essentials like food, medicine, cooking gas and fuel, causing long lines and widespread public unrest. Protests escalated into riots, resulting in the occupation of key government buildings and the resignation of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the country amid the chaos.

The economy, which collapsed in 2022 after a severe shortage of dollars, is one of the key issues for voters, who have struggled with inflation that soared to as much as 70%, a battered currency and power tariffs that jumped 65%.

Sri Lankans will vote on Saturday for their next president, who will be key to deciding the future of reforms in a nation slowly emerging from worst financial crisis in decades. A critical shortfall in foreign exchange in 2022 pushed Sri Lanka's economy into the worst financial freefall in decades.

Sri Lanka celebra el sábado unas elecciones presidenciales con tintes de referéndum sobre las políticas de austeridad impuestas por el rescate negociado con el Fondo Monetario Internacional tras el colapso económico de esta isla asiática.

Analysts say popular demand for change has led to growing support for a leftist alliance led by Anura Kumara Dissanayake