CA order on Geetha has no effect on UPFA list: SP Chief Minister | Daily News

CA order on Geetha has no effect on UPFA list: SP Chief Minister

Even if former Galle District Parliamentarian Geetha Kumarasinghe was disqualified to be a Member of Parliament owing to her dual citizenship in both Sri Lanka and Switzerland as per the Court of Appeal order of May 3, the same disqualification could not be applied to determine the legal validity of the entire list of candidates who contested the 2015 Parliamentary Election under the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) ticket, Southern Province Chief Minister Shan Wijayalal De Silva asserted.

The Chief Minister was addressing a press conference held at Dhakshina Paya, the Southern Province Ministry complex , Labuduwa, Galle, yesterday.

There are some basic qualifications in respect of candidates that are considered at the time of receiving nominations stipulated under the Election Law. Among such basic qualifications there are no issues such as dual citizenship and related concerns as basic qualifications. Any matter other than basic qualifications regarding the legal validity of a candidate should be challenged at the judiciary according to the Election Law. On the other hand, the Court Of Appeal has given a ruling concerning the legality of Geetha Kumarasinghe’s election as a Parliament member. Hence, due to the Court order given in respect of an individual candidate in a list, the respective entire list of candidates would not be null and void, he further asserted.

In response to a question by the media about rumours of a change in the ministerial portfolios of the Council’s Board of Ministers, the Chief Minister said that similar gossip were spread on several occasions, while there was no truth in such stories.

However, change of ministerial portfolios, expulsions and resignations are not a new experience to Provincial Councils. Earlier too, there had been many such incidents. Article 154-E-4 of the Constitution distinctively prescribes the constitutional provisions with regard to the appointment of Chief Minister and the Board of Ministers, he said.The Chief Minister further said that according to his knowledge, there would be no change in ministerial posts in the Southern Provincial Council, adding that he too did not wish such adjustments in the Board of Ministers of the Council. 


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