PARTY LEADERS TO MOVE COURT FOR EARLY LG POLLS

PM, AG, Elections Chief attend meeting

At a meeting chaired by Speaker Karu Jayasuriya and attended by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya and Elections Commission Chief Mahinda Deshapriya, political party leaders decided to move the Court of Appeal to obtain an early ruling on the local government polls and also if possible to have the petitions filed by some voters withdrawn.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told the party leaders that the government was committed to the conduct of the local government polls in January and the elections for the three provincial councils in March next year

However, it was decided that in the even such moves were not successful then the elections to be held to local government bodies except the 64 multi-wards effected by the delimitation process.

The elections are to be under the gazette issued by President Maithripala Sirisena in August 2015.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told the party leaders that the government was committed to the conduct of the local government polls in January and the elections for the three provincial councils in March next year.

A communiqué issued by the Speakers Office said all party leaders and Local Government and Provincial Councils Minister Faizer Musthapha were of the view that the LG polls must not be postponed any further.

It was also decided at this meeting that the incorrect and flawed delimitation report released under the Rajapaksa administration be thrown away and the gazette issued by President in August, 2015 with the necessary amendments be accepted.

The Prime Minister and the other party leaders decided to entrust the task of taking further action to the Speaker Jayasuriya.