By Maheesha Mudugamuwa The decision to seek a determination of the Supreme Court on the issues arising from the inability to convene a new Parliament before the first week of June as pointed out by Election Commission (EC) Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya, would be taken by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa this week, a senior government minister told The Sunday Morning. Yesterday (4), Government Spokesperson Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told The Sunday Morning that, as per the Constitution, the sole authority to decide on the parliamentary election and whether or not to reconvene Parliament was vested with the President and therefore, he would take the necessary steps accordingly. Throughout last week, there was intense pressure from the Opposition political parties, particularly the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and United National Party (UNP), to reconvene Parliament to discuss the issues pertaining to the ongoing coronavirus crisis in the country. TNA Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran, on his Twitter account, stated that President Rajapaksa should rescind the proclamation dated 2 March 2020 and re-activate Parliament immediately. Furthermore, UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe also stressed that the President did not have fiscal powers after 30 April until a new Parliament was convened. Former State Minister of Finance Eran Wickremeratne also on his Twitter account stated that the President should reconvene Parliament and get everyone’s support in minimising the economic consequences of Covid-19. “If not, he runs the risk of turning a health epidemic into an economic knockdown and a humanitarian crisis of unforeseen proportions,” the post reads. However, expressing a different opinion, former UNP MP Dr. Wijedasa Rajapakshe stated, during a discussion held under the patronage of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, that there was no need to reconvene Parliament. He said the President had powers to do so only under Article 155 of the Constitution which permits the president to reconvene Parliament if he wanted to pass an emergency regulation, such as in the event of a war. However, he opined that since the necessary legal provisions to control the health epidemic had already been set out in the Quarantine (and Prevention of Diseases) Act, there was no such need. He also stressed that reconvening Parliament would cause unnecessary issues. Meanwhile, when The Sunday Morning contacted EC Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya, he stated that the EC would not be able to hold the election before 1 June and therefore, it would be impossible for the new Parliament to convene within three months from the declaration of the general election as stipulated in the Constitution. The eighth Parliament was dissolved on 2 March. However, the necessary decision should be taken by the President as the EC had no authority in that regard, Deshapriya added. The Commission on 1 April, in a letter addressed to the President’s Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundera, has requested the President to seek a determination from the Supreme Court on conducting the general election, owing to the current situation concerning Covid-19 in the country. However, in another letter dated 31 March, the Commission had stated that failing to reconvene Parliament on time, if the pandemic continues, would create a constitutional crisis. Deshapriya, in the letter, had said that if the new Parliament is to be convened on 1 June, the general election must be held on 27 or 28 May, and that the preparation for the polls should commence on 20 April. However, monitoring the ongoing situation, the Commission would not be able to begin the necessary pre-arrangements for the election, he added. Therefore, he requested the President to seek a determination from the Supreme Court.