Sri Lanka may be inching dangerously close to becoming the frontline of a brewing regional conflict, as startling allegations surface about undisclosed defense agreements with India. Pubudu Jagoda, Education Secretary of the Frontline Socialist Party, has sounded the alarm, claiming that India is preparing to build a warship and submarine manufacturing facility inside Colombo Port, a move he says could drag Sri Lanka into the heart of an international war.
In an explosive interview with an online media channel, Jagoda asserted that even key cabinet ministers in President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government have not seen the full contents of the Indo-Lanka agreements. He claims that ministers with whom he has personal ties confirmed they were kept in the dark about critical elements of the deals.
While the Sri Lankan government insists it has signed seven Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with India, Indian media reports place that number at ten, and astonishingly, India’s own Defence Secretary has reportedly confirmed plans for Indian weapons factories and arsenals to be established on Sri Lankan soil.
“If these claims are false,” Jagoda argued, “then the Sri Lankan government must step forward immediately and clarify the situation.” Instead, he accused Cabinet Spokesperson Nalinda Jayatissa of parroting India’s narrative, suggesting he has become little more than a mouthpiece for the Indian government.
Jagoda emphasized the grave implications of such agreements. “No administration since independence has ever betrayed Sri Lanka’s sovereignty in this way,” he said. By secretly enabling foreign military installations, he warned, Sri Lanka risks becoming a proxy battlefield in a future regional war.
He called for complete transparency, urging the government to release the full text of the agreements and consult the public on issues that could impact the country’s national security.
As the Indian Ocean grows in strategic importance, global powers are intensifying their presence in the region. Jagoda’s revelations raise troubling questions: Is Sri Lanka being quietly repositioned as a military outpost? Are citizens and even lawmakers being kept in the dark?
One thing is certain: if the allegations hold water, Sri Lanka could be sitting on a geopolitical time bomb with the clock already ticking.
