The move also came as the island nation braced for country-wide protests on Sunday against the government's poor handling of the ongoing economic crisis where people currently endure long hours of power outages and scarcity of essentials. Pic/AFP

The declaration came at the same time as the court ordered bail to a section of the protesters arrested for the demonstration opposite Rajapaksa's residence on Thursday. Pic/AFP

The protesters said that participants had no political motivation and were only looking for solutions from the government for the hardships heaped on the public. Pic/AFP

Several people were injured and vehicles were set on fire as the agitation turned violent. Police fired tear gas and water cannons at the protesters after they pulled down a steel barricade placed near the president's residence. Pic/AFP

A statement issued by the presidential media division on Friday said an extremist group was behind the unrest near President Rajapaksa's residence in Mirihana.

Sri Lanka is currently experiencing its worst economic crisis in history. With long lines for fuel, cooking gas, essentials in short supply and long hours of power cuts the public has been suffering for weeks. Pic/AFP

Rajapaksa has defended his government's actions, saying the foreign exchange crisis was not his making and the economic downturn was largely pandemic driven where the island's tourism revenue and inward remittances waning

Sri Lanka's prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa (C) is escorted past a burnt-out bus near Sri Lanka's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's home in Colombo on April 1, 2022. Pic/AFP

People clash with riot police as they demonstrate outside Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's home to call for his stepping downas the country's unprecedented economic crisis worsened in Colombo