General Sarath Fonseka on Monday bade farewell to the Army and said he will announce his future plans in a couple of days, as speculation mounted that the architect of Sri Lanka’s military victory over LTTE may be the Opposition candidate in the next presidential polls.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has appointed Air Force Chief Roshan Gunathileke as the new Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) in place of Fonseka, who spent 39 years in the Army.

Gunathileke, 53, has been given the new appointment in addition to his current post, Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga said. This follows the acceptance of resignation of Fonseka from the post with immediate effect, seen as a rebuff to the former Army Chief who wanted to be relieved of his duties from December 1.

Fonseka met President Mahinda Rajapaksa on his last day in office, amid speculation that the two may be headed for a possible face-off in an early presidential election. Rajapaksa thanked him for his support in defeating terrorism in the country, reports here said.

Contrary to expectations, Rajapaksa has refrained from announcing the dates for presidential or general elections at a key convention of the ruling party, only saying that a decision will be taken in due course.

Addressing the annual National Convention of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) at the Khettarama cricket stadium here on Sunday evening, the President kept the estimated crowd of nearly one lakh guessing on the election dates

A farewell ceremony was held for Fonseka on Monday morning, in which he said he is committed to serve the nation. “I expect to announce my future steps in two or three days. I will be serving the country in the future,” he was quoted as saying by media reports here.