Sri Lankan President "Gotabaya Rajapaksa" fled as protesters surrounded the house.

SRI LANKA: On Saturday, just before protesters enraged by an unprecedented economic crisis stormed and overran the compound, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa left his official residence.

Crowds had gathered outside of the president's residence and were demanding for him to resign, blaming the severe economic downturn on poor administrative management.

As protesters surged at the gates of the President’s Palace, troops guarding the compound fired in the air to hold back the tide until Mr. Rajapaksa was safely removed, a top defence source told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“The president was escorted to safety,” the source added. “He is still the president, he is being protected by a military unit.”

As demonstrators swarmed Galle Face in Colombo and some even took over the presidential office, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had preliminary talks with a number of party leaders. The Speaker of Parliament has called a meeting of all party leaders to discuss the best course of action for the nation and will convene that meeting shortly. If Mr. Rajapaksa resigned, Mr. Wickremesinghe would take over as president.

People in the crowd broadcast live footage on social media of hundreds of people walking  the President's royal residence.

The colonial-era state mansion is one of Sri Lanka’s key symbols of state power and officials said Mr. Rajapaksa’s departure raised questions as to whether he intended to remain in office.

“We still don’t know where he is, but we know he is with the Sri Lanka naval force and is safe.” 

Thousands of people had poured into the capital for the show, the most recent expression of distress started by the crisis. 

Colombo’s primary healing center said 14 individuals were being treated there after being hit by tear gas canisters.

‘Not a deterrent’

Sri Lanka has suffered through months of food and fuel shortages, lengthy blackouts and galloping inflation after running out of foreign currency to import vital goods.

Thousands of individuals had poured into the capital for the exhibit, the most recent expression of turmoil started by the crisis. 

 Police had pulled back a time limitation arrange issued on Friday after restriction parties, rights activists and the bar affiliation undermined to sue the police chief. 

 Thousands of anti-government dissidents disregarded the arrange and indeed constrained railroad specialists to function trains to require them to Colombo for Saturday’s rally, authorities said.

“The curfew was not a obstacle, in truth it energized more individuals to induce on the lanes in defiance,” the resistance official said. 

“Passengers had commandeered trains to reach Colombo.”

 The nation has about depleted as of now rare supplies of petrol, but nonconformists supported by the most resistance parties enlisted private buses to travel to the capital. 

Demonstrators have camped exterior Rajapaksa’s seafront office to request his renunciation over the government’s fumble of the crisis. Soldiers outfitted with attack rifles were bussed into Colombo on Friday to fortify police guarding Mr. Rajapaksa’s official residence. 

Authorities said they had sent about 20,000 troops and police officers for a security operation to secure the President.

Sri Lanka has defaulted on its $51 billion outside obligation and has been in bailout talks with the Universal Money related Fund. 

Nine people were slaughtered and hundreds injured when clashes emitted over the nation after Rajapaksa supporters assaulted tranquil nonconformists exterior the President’s office in May.