Sri Lanka's ruling party launches protest against opposition

Sri Lanka's ruling United National Party (UNP) held a protest here on Tuesday against the Joint Opposition which groups former president Mahinda Rajapakse.

Several parliamentarians and members of the UNP gathered at the Town Hall in Colombo and held a protest march, Xinhua reported.

Hundreds of UNP supporters also took part, voicing criticism against the opposition.

The Joint Opposition, which consists of opposition parliamentarians loyal to Rajapakse, said that it will hold a series of protests this month against the united government of President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Sirisena defeated Rajapakse in a presidential election in January last year and in August, the United National Party led by Wickremesinghe won a parliamentary election.

In September, Sirisena's Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and Wickremesinghe's ruling UNP joined hands to form a united government.

However, members of the Joint Opposition blame the government for a high cost of living and a sluggish economy.