By Raj Sivanathan –

Raj Sivanathan

The arrest of Ranil Wickremesinghe last week, followed quickly by his release on bail, has thrown Sri Lanka’s political establishment into chaos. For some, this was long overdue accountability for a man who, along with his uncle JR Jayewardene, presided over decades of corruption, authoritarianism, and complicity in state violence. For others, it was nothing more than a political stunt—a show trial staged by the NPP to prove its toughness.

But the bigger story is what comes next: how this moment reshapes the opposition, how it tests the NPP’s credibility, and how it impacts the upcoming provincial council elections.

Opposition Finds a Common Enemy

Ranil’s arrest has done what years of backroom deals could not—it has united the otherwise fractured opposition. UNP loyalists, SJB reformists, and minority party brokers are suddenly singing from the same hymn sheet: that the NPP is weaponising the law to crush rivals.

This unity is fragile but dangerous. If it grows, the NPP could find itself fighting not just tired old parties, but a consolidated opposition front with a ready-made narrative of “political persecution.”

The Provincial Council Test

The next real battleground will be the provincial council elections. For the North and East, these elections matter because the councils are the only institutions left that give Tamils even a sliver of autonomy under the battered 13th Amendment.

• If the NPP stalls or dilutes the elections, Tamil voters will write them off as just another Sinhala-led regime playing for time.

• If the elections go ahead under fair rules, the NPP has a chance to prove it is different from the UNP, SLPP, and the rest who used devolution as a bargaining chip.

This is not just a technical issue—it will determine whether Tamils believe the NPP is genuinely committed to democratic reform.

More Arrests on the Horizon

Nobody believes Ranil will be the last big fish. The files on corruption, war-time abuses, and economic crimes are thick, and the public appetite for justice is strong. But with every new arrest comes the same danger:

• The opposition will scream witch-hunt.

• The legal system will be dragged into political theatre.

• The streets will heat up with protests, strikes, and counter-mobilisations.

The NPP needs to decide whether it wants to lead a process of accountability or simply act out revenge politics in public view.

What Does This Mean for Tamil Politics?

For Tamils, the Colombo drama is a double-edged sword.

• On the one hand, the NPP’s need to prove itself could open doors for negotiations on devolution, land rights, demilitarisation, and justice for wartime atrocities.

• On the other, if Tamil leaders get sucked into the new “all-opposition” chorus led by Ranil and Sajith, their core demands will once again be buried under Sinhala elite power games.

The choice is stark: remain independent, leverage the moment, and demand specifics from the NPP—or become pawns in a Colombo theatre that has little interest in Tamil self-determination.

Can the NPP Survive This?

If the NPP is serious, it must:

• Show absolute transparency in every case—due process, evidence, and judicial independence must be front and centre.

• Hold the provincial council elections on time, without gimmicks.

• Engage Tamil civil society directly, not just the usual Colombo-based brokers.

• Resist turning arrests into political carnivals.

Otherwise, the NPP risks becoming what it promised to replace: just another government that uses power to punish enemies and silence critics.

Final Word

Ranil’s arrest is not the end of an era. It is the start of a dangerous game. How the NPP handles this will decide whether it can hold onto its credibility—or whether it will hand the opposition the very ammunition they need to bring it down.

For Tamils, the message is simple: don’t get lost in Colombo’s theatre. Use this moment to demand real change—or watch, yet again, as Sinhala politics writes the script and everyone else is left as extras.