Colombo :  Former Sri Lankan army chief Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka has formally announced his candidacy for the upcoming presidential election. Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka, the architect of the military crackdown that led to the destruction of the LTTE, has vowed to crush corruption and boost the economy.Presidential elections will be held in Sri Lanka between 17 September and 16 October. The date of the election will be announced on Friday.

'We must crush corruption'

Fonseka said in an X post, 'I want to announce my candidacy for the presidency before the people of Sri Lanka.' He said, 'For 76 years, we have been led by an inept political group that has pushed us towards bankruptcy. To develop Sri Lanka, we must crush corruption. We need to take advantage of our natural resources to boost income generation. Fonseka further said, this is my formal and official announcement as a candidate for the presidency of Sri Lanka for the 2024 presidential election.

Contested elections against Mahinda Rajapaksa in 2010

Fonseka, who defeated the LTTE's separatist campaign to create a Tamil state, was the opposition's main challenger against incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa in the 2010 presidential election. He suffered a crushing defeat then. Fonseka, 73, said he was inviting all Sri Lankans to move forward to make the island a corruption-free nation. Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapaksa also announced his candidacy for the election.