Power and Energy Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka was taken by surprise when he heard a familiar voice from the other end of a telephone call which he got recently – nearly two weeks after the presidential election.

It was none other than the voice of the former President against whom the leaders of the Common Opposition, including Ranawaka, waged a relentless battle over the past two months.

However, there was no sign of anger or any other bitter feeling in the former President’s voice.

“Champika, oyaala okkoma ekathu vela mawa peradduwa neda?” (Champika, you all got together and defeated me, noh?) former President Rajapaksa asked, smiling.

The Minister too responded to his former boss’s ‘friendly’ accusation in a congenial way.

Ranawaka said it was nothing personal and the JHU decided to support the Common Candidate of the opposition when the UPFA, led by Rajapaksa, turned down the proposals presented by the JHU. The former President, in response, said he had no personal grudge against any one and he took everything in the right spirit.

Rajapaksa, before hanging up the call, also congratulated Ranawaka for his new ministerial portfolio as the Power and Energy Minister. However, the telephone call from Rajapaksa came as a total surprise to Ranawaka as he never expected a 'goodwill gesture' from the former President, at this juncture.

“Since these are the days of ‘yahapalanaya’, we all must expect strange things,” a friend of Ranawaka, who got to know about this ‘unexpected’ telephone conversation, quipped.