A group of residents from Rathupaswala had offered drinking water to Pada Yatra protesters marching from Nittambuwa to Kadawatha, today.

A group led by Theripaha Siridhamma Thera, a Buddhist monk from the Rathupaswala area, had initiated the move. They kept hundreds of water bottles alongside the Colombo-Kandy road to "greet" the protesters backing former President Mahinda Rajapaksa. 

"The Rajapaksas gave us bullets when we asked for water. But, we will give them waters, not bullets or stones," they told the reporters gathered at the venue. They were planning to greet the Joint Opposition protestors near the Oruthota junction, Gampaha.

The Rajapaksa government was accused of shooting protesters who demanded drinking water, in 2013. Coincidentally, the third anniversary of Rathupaswala killings falls on August 01. 

However, the Police intervened to disperse the group saying the "welcome" could lead to a clash between protesters and the Rathupaswala residents.