Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) General Secretary Tilvin Silva and his delegation in New Delhi today, as the five-member delegation concluded its five-day visit to India.
Following the meeting, Jaishankar described the discussions as “good” and said the two sides discussed strengthening the longstanding ties between India and Sri Lanka.
“As a trusted partner, India will always support Sri Lanka’s progress and prosperity,” Jaishankar said in a social media post following the meeting.
Silva led the JVP delegation during its visit from September 27 to October 1 at the invitation of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), under its “Know BJP” programme.
The BJP said the visit was aimed at strengthening engagement between the two political parties, sharing organisational experiences and further developing bilateral ties.
The delegation included JVP Central Committee member Chandrika Adikari, MP Aboobucker Athambawa, District Committee member Kabilan Suntharamoorthy and International Department member Kalpana Madhubhashini.
During the visit, the delegation held discussions with BJP National General Secretary (Organisation) B.L. Santhosh and other senior BJP officials. The discussions covered the BJP’s organisational structure, grassroots membership network and development initiatives in India.
The JVP delegation also met Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and visited the Delhi BJP office, where it was received by Delhi BJP President Harsh Malhotra.
The programme included meetings with BJP women’s and youth organisations, as well as visits to the Indian Parliament and the National War Memorial.
Earlier discussions during the visit also covered issues including Indian fishermen, refugee resettlement and cooperation between Sri Lanka and India.
The meeting with Jaishankar took place as the JVP delegation concluded its five-day visit to India.
