President Mahinda Rajapaksa instructed Finance Ministry officials to take measures to reduce the price of a domestic gas cylinder by Rs. 250 from tomorrow.

He made these remarks addressing a function for senior citizens which took place in Wedamulla, Kelaniya today (October 09).

This move came just weeks after President Rajapaksa announced the reduction of fuel prices and electricity tariff. It was announced just days before the Uva Provincial Council election. price of a liter of petrol was reduced by Rs 5 and the price of a diesel liter wasreduced by Rs 3. Meanwhile, the price of kerosene too was reduced by Rs 20 per liter.

To coincide with the opening of the third phase of the Norochcholai coal power plant project , the electricity tariff  too was reduced by 25 percent.

However, political analysts say that price reductions strongly suggest the possible announcement of a “snap” presidential election.

It is strongly speculated that the government will opt to go for a presidential election as the popularity of the ruling party is waning, as indicated by the election results of Uva. However, timelines of the Presidential polls are still not clear. Some members of the ruling party believe that the government will announce the election immediately after Pope Francis’s visit to Sri Lanka.