{"id":62287,"date":"2018-12-20T00:10:49","date_gmt":"2018-12-20T05:10:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=62287"},"modified":"2018-12-20T00:10:49","modified_gmt":"2018-12-20T05:10:49","slug":"leader-of-the-opposition-rajavarothayam-sampanthan-raises-issue-of-kurunegala-district-mp-mahinda-rajapaksas-eligibility-to-remain-as-a-member-of-parliament-due-to-leaving-the-party-through-which","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=62287","title":{"rendered":"Leader of the Opposition Rajavarothayam Sampanthan Raises Issue of Kurunegala District MP Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Eligibility to Remain as a Member of Parliament Due To Leaving the Party Through Which he was Elected and Joining a new Party."},"content":{"rendered":"

By<\/p>\n

Meera Srinivasan<\/strong><\/p>\n

Following a crisis marked by two competing claims to the office of the Prime Minister, R. Sampanthan \u2014 Leader of Opposition since 2015 \u2014 on Wednesday challenged the Speaker on his naming of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa for the position.<\/p>\n

Referring to Speaker Karu Jayasuriya\u2019s announcement on Tuesday, following a request made by the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) led by President Maithripala Sirisena, Mr. Sampanthan said the decision was made without removing him from the post.<\/p>\n

\u201cConsequently, it would seem that there are two persons holding the position of the Leader of the Opposition in the current Parliament. The question arises as to whether you lacked the conviction to remove me from the post of the Leader of the Opposition,\u201d the senior legislator said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

After nearly two months of political upheaval sparked by President Sirisena\u2019s abrupt sacking of Mr. Wickremesinghe in October, replacing him with Mr. Rajapaksa, the ousted PM was reinstated on Sunday. However, the Cabinet is yet to be formed, reportedly due to infighting over allocation of portfolios.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn these circumstances when a government has not yet been fully constituted, I submit there was no need for another person to be recognised as the Leader of the Opposition in haste. Doing so without removing the functioning Leader of the Opposition has further complicated the issue,\u201d Mr. Sampanthan noted.<\/p>\n

Further, Mr. Sampanthan raised doubts over Mr. Rajapaksa\u2019s eligibility to remain a member of Parliament, after the former President sought membership in the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, a new party formed by his supporters. Arguing he no longer belonged to the party through which he was elected to the legislature, Mr. Sampanthan told the Speaker: \u201cThis would again suggest that your decision has been taken in haste and that your decision is in violation of our Constitution.\u201d<\/p>\n

The events, he said, prompted the question as to whether Sri Lanka is moving towards becoming \u201ca failed state” which does not recognise the supremacy of its Constitution the primary law. \u201cSri Lankan citizens who wish to live in an undivided indivisible Sri Lankan State in unity and harmony view this as an act of majoritarianism, which has been the primary cause of the pathetic state in which the country is in today,\u201d he said, emphasising the \u201curgent\u201d need for the promised, but much-delayed, framing of a new Constitution.<\/p>\n

Courtesy:The Hindu<\/em><\/p>\n

Tweet<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Meera Srinivasan Following a crisis marked by two competing claims to the office of the Prime Minister, R. Sampanthan \u2014 Leader of Opposition since 2015 \u2014 on Wednesday challenged the Speaker on his naming of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa for the position. Referring to Speaker Karu Jayasuriya\u2019s announcement on Tuesday, following a request made …<\/p>\n

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