UPFA Nomination Board yet to decide on Sarath Kumara

The UPFA Nomination Board is yet to decide whether former member of the North Western Provincial Council (NWPC) Ananda Sarath Kumara who gained notoriety for getting a school teacher to kneel for punishing his daughter, would be given nominations to contest the upcoming PC elections.

However, ahead of the Nomination Board decision, the ex-provincial councillor claimed that he is confident of getting nominations from the UPFA, to contest from the Puttalam district.

“I have been a longstanding member of the SLFP, and have been in active politics for 25 years. I have applied for nominations and am confident of getting it. I strongly believe the Party will accept my nomination. I have a clean record in my political career, and have served the Party well,” Sarath Kumara told the Sunday Times.

Mr. Kumara told his colleagues this week that he had met President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Minister Basil Rajapaksa and explained the incident, and was confident of getting nominations.

However, Mass Media and Information Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said that the decision on who gets nominations to contest the PC polls will be decided by the Party’s Nominations Board.

Western Province Chief Minister Prasanna Ranatunga who is on the NWP Nomination Board told the Sunday Times that the Party would have to take a decision on the matter.“We have not been informed by the Party of any decision to not grant nominations. Usually, only persons found guilty by a court are not given nominations,” he said.

However, in this case, we will have to wait for a decision from the Party.

Sarath Kumara was remanded by the Puttalam Magistrate in late June, for allegedly punishing a school teacher, and is now on bail pending investigations.

He is accused of punishing a female teacher of the Navagattegama Navodya School by making her kneel, after she had had pulled up the politician’s daughter over the length of her school uniform.

The teacher had later lodged a complaint with the police over the incident, and subsequently, sought a transfer to another school, as she was harassed after the incident became public.

Meanwhile, on Friday, the Yatiyantota Pradeshiya Sabha Chairman U.D. Wasantha Kumara was arrested for accepting a bribe of Rs 15,000 from a poultry farmer to issue a licence.