During the two day visit, Rajapaksa will hold discussions with India’s National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon and several other senior officials. The official objective of the visit is to take part in the annual tripartite maritime security conference between Sri Lanka, India and the Maldives. On the sidelines of the conference, the Sri Lankan  Defence Secretary will hold discussions with senior Indian officials.

Multiple political sources confirmed that India has already decided to vote against Sri Lanka at the 25th session of the UNHRC. During bilateral discussions between Indian Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid and his Sri Lankan counterpart Professor G.L. Peiris, Khurshid had communicated to the Sri Lankan foreign minister that India would not be in a position to vote in favour of Sri Lanka at the Geneva session.

At a breakfast meeting with foreign media correspondents based in Sri Lanka a few days ago, Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapaksa said he understood India’s electoral compulsions in regard to its stand on the US-sponsored resolution against Sri Lanka at the March session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva.

When asked by the journalists whether he had an idea as to how India may vote, President Rajapaksa said: “I don’t know. But we are aware that the Indians are going to face an election a month after the March session. India’s leaders have to think of their future and take into account the mood of electorate. We understand them. Politicians understand each other.”