Nepal, Feb. 29 -- As the presidential election in Sri Lanka is scheduled for the latter part of this year, the political circle is seeing new leaders rise, defeating the old ones who have nothing new to offer to the country, which has long been coping with inflation and rising prices. The emergence of Anura Kumara Dissanayake, alias AKD, has piqued people's interest in the country at present. Dissanayake is the formidable leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-a radical left party now transformed into a socialist force and heads the National People's Power (NPP)-an alliance of 27 groups formed in 2019.

The JVP historically championed the cause of marginal people. After the economic crisis, which led Sri Lanka to bankruptcy and unr...