NEW DELHI: The situation in Sri Lanka is very fragile and any military crackdown on protesters could further worsen the overall atmosphere, strategic affairs experts warned on Wednesday as the island nation looks at a new political phase after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country following months of protests.
It is very important that political anarchy is avoided in Sri Lanka and all the stakeholders must work together to restore political stability, they said.
Rajapaksa and his wife flew to the Maldives bowing to months of mass protests over the island nation's worst economic crisis in decades.
Rajapaksa appointed Prime Minister Wickremesinghe as the acting President and hours later he ordered military and police to do whatever is required to restore law and order in the country.
"The situation is very uncertain at this point. It is very important that political anarchy is avoided, but at the same time any intervention by military and police through any crackdown could further worsen the situation," Ambassador Ashok K Kantha told PTI.
Kantha served as Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka from 2009 to 2013.
"The situation is very difficult. But what is required today really is restoration of some kind of political stability within the bounds of the Sri Lankan constitution," Kantha said.
"This is a process that needs to play out within Sri Lanka itself and there is very little role for other countries including India," he added.
Kantha said steps must be taken to ensure that the political situation stabilises.
"It must stabilise as quickly as possible because without a modicum of political stability, it will be very difficult for the government of Sri Lanka to address the unprecedented economic challenges," he said.
Ambassador Anil Wadhwa, a former secretary in the ministry of external affairs, said that the situation is in control now.
"For India's sake, we just hope that the prime minister takes control. It is in our interest that there is no refugee flow into India as it could trigger a crisis of another dimension," he said.
Wadhwa said there is a need for an "urgent bailout package" for Sri Lanka by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
"Sooner the new government is formed, the better it is for Sri Lanka as it can address key issues," he said.
The former diplomat also hailed India's position on the overall situation.
In its first reaction to the massive political turmoil in Colombo, India on Sunday said it stands with the Sri Lankan people in their aspirations for prosperity and progress through democratic means, established institutions and constitutional framework.
Strategic affairs expert Prof S D Muni said things will not be easy for Sri Lanka in the next few months.
Kantha said India helped Sri Lanka quite generously.
Sri Lanka, a country of 22 million people, is under the grip of an unprecedented economic turmoil, the worst in seven decades, leaving millions struggling to buy food, medicine, fuel and other essentials.
Prime Minister Wickremesinghe last week said Sri Lanka is now a bankrupt country.
On Saturday, thousands of angry protesters stormed Rajapaksa's official residence and set Wickremesinghe's private house on fire.