Photographs of Sri Lankan origin unveiled in Delhi, depict ‘unbreakable’ Indo-Lanka ties

On Saturday, two photographs of Sri Lankan origin were unveiled at the State Minister of External Affairs and Culture’s office in Delhi to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Indo-Lanka diplomatic relations. Two photographs of Sri Lankan origin were displayed today at the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Sri Lanka, which falls this year, according to an official statement from the High Commission of Sri Lanka in India.

Notably, the photographs, which were installed in the office of State Minister of External Affairs and Culture Meenakshi Lekhi, depict two murals painted in the Kelaniya Rajamaha Vihara by eminent Sri Lankan painter Solias Mendis.

The first mural depicts Arahat Mahinda delivering the Buddha’s message to King Devanampiyatissa upon his arrival in Sri Lanka. According to the release, the second mural depicts Theri Sanghamitta’s arrival in Sri Lanka with the right-hand branch sapling of the Sri Maha Bodhi tree.

According to the release, these two historical occurrences, which occurred in the third century BCE, symbolised the strong and unbreakable cultural ties between Sri Lanka and India, as well as the beginning of Buddhist civilization in Sri Lanka.

The images were ceremonially unveiled in front of revered Sri Lankan members of the Maha Sangha, including the most Venerable Waskaduwe Mahindawansa Maha Nayaka Thero, who was in New Delhi for the Global Buddhist Summit, by Meenakshi Lekhi, State Minister of External Affairs and Culture, and Milinda Moragoda, Sri Lanka’s high commissioner to India.

Professor Anura Manatunga, Director General of the Department of Archaeology of Sri Lanka, Abhijit Halder, Director General of the International Buddhist Confederation, and senior officials from the Sri Lanka High Commission in New Delhi were also present.

The same murals had previously been shown in two images by the Sri Lankan High Commission in New Delhi, and were intended for installation at the recently opened Kushinagar international airport, according to the Sri Lankan High Commission in India. Moreover, in February 2022, similar photographs were installed at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Headquarters in Nagpur, and in July 2022, at the Ahmedabad International Airport.

As part of an ongoing celebration of the 75th anniversary of Indo-Lanka diplomatic relations, action has been initiated to install similar photographs at other locations in India, including the international airports in Buddha Gaya and Varanasi soon, enhancing Sri Lanka’s cultural footprint at the level of the States of the Union of India, according to an official release.