Pope Francis will visit Sri Lanka as planned, irrespective of a Presidential Election in early January, the Bishops of the Catholic Church have said.

Trincomalee Bishop Kingsley Swampillai has confirmed this to BBC after a discussion on the visit with a delegation of the government led by Minister of External Affairs G.L. Peiris.

The meeting was also attended by Defense Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, a three member delegation from the Vatican, Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, Ministerial Secretaries and officials of the Armed Forces.

The Bishop of Trincomalee has told BBC that the discussion was conducted in a friendly manner and it was obvious that all parties were eager to ensure a successful visit by the Pope. “Nothing was discussed about an election. Besides, it has not still been announced,” the Bishop has added.

Cabinet Spokesperson Minister of Mass Media Keheliya Rambukwella had earlier confirmed that the election will be held in January.

There were reports the election will be held on January 3 or January 8.

Church officials have added that if the election is to be held in January, the best day will be early in the month. Bishop Swampillai has said that there will still be around 10 days for the Pope’s visit on January 13 if the election is heald very early in January. The Bishop has expressed confidence that the situation in the country would have returned to normalcy by that time.

Sri Lankan Government officials has assured the Church that the government wants to see a successful visit by the Pope irrespective of the election date and the government will be taking all steps to assure maximum security. Bishop Swampillai said that he is extremely satisfied with the security arrangements. All coordination of the visit will be done through the Defense Secretary, the Bishop also has said.

When asked as to whether the government will have an advantage due to the Pope’s visit so close to an election, the Bishop has said in a country with a Buddhist majority, the visit by the Pope cannot be an advantage to a particular party and can only be a disadvantage.