Pool party, gym sessions, selfies: How Sri Lankan protesters celebrated after making Prez flee his residence

After a chaotic day, Sri Lankan protesters have said that they won't leave President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's residence on Sunday (July 10). On Saturday, angry protesters stormed the president's home and forced him to flee. The navy later announced that Rajapaksa would resign.

On Saturday, the presidential palace in Colombo was overrun by hundreds of people. The protesters walked in the garden, laughed, took selfies, enjoyed while working out and treated themselves to a swim. People were plonking on a grand piano, admiring the expensive artwork, picnicking and taking turns to sit in the president's chair.

To what it appeared, the mood inside the presidential compound was festive as soon as the Rajapaksa had left. The videos showed that the crowd set aside the frustrations of long-running food and fuel shortages.

Dozens of men shed their shirts and jumped into the presidential pool. People were frolicking in the water and some were even doing summersaults.

Hundreds of others sat down on the lawns for a break from the morning's confrontation with police officers.

Apart from the so-calledfestive, the crowd of protesters smashed furniture and artefacts inside the palace. Media reports mentioned and the videos showed that protesters who seized the residence of the head of Sri Lanka found a huge amount of money there. Some videos showed people were even taking money.

"We are in Gotabaya's room, this is the underwear he left behind. He has left his shoes behind too," one young man said while holding up black briefs on a live video shared on multiple social media channels.

The crowd had managed to work their way into the compound after dismantling barricades and scaling its high gates with the help of a captured police truck.

People even took turns lounging on Rajapaksa's king-size bed and the comfortable sofas. Protesters scanned through the presidential pantry and munched snacks and had soft drinks. They were seen spread out on counter tops.

"I was surprised to see that an air conditioner was working in his bathroom. We have to put up with endless blackouts," a man who entered the palace told AFP by telephone.

'We should not be thieves'

As the protesters marched in the palace, a university student climbed a gate post and loudly urged the throng not to vandalise or loot the state residence, which is home to a repository of priceless artefacts.

"We called Gota a thief and got him out, please do not remove anything from the palace," he said, adding, "We should not be thieves like the Rajapaksas."

(With inputs from agencies)

WATCH WION LIVE HERE