The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) stated that they would not support any potential Government led by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP).

With the election of NPP Leader and Parliamentarian Anura Kumara Dissanayake as the President, attention has now shifted to how the NPP will form a government, especially given that the Party currently has only three representatives in the Parliament.

When The Daily Morning queried SLPP General Secretary MP Sagara Kariyawasam as to whether they would consider supporting an NPP Government, he firmly said that they would not. “We have no intention of supporting them. As a Party, we adhere to a distinct set of policies. Both the SJB and the NPP have policies that are different from ours. Unlike some others, we are not prepared to support such a movement merely to secure power.”

The Daily Morning also queried SLFP Senior Vice President and incumbent Minister of Agriculture and Plantation Industries Mahinda Amaraweera, who was supporting defeated Presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe, as to whether they would consider extending support to an NPP Government. In response, he said: “We are not hoping to support an NPP Government.”

In response to the same query by The Daily Morning, SJB National Organiser and MP, Tissa Attanayake stated that there is no point in discussing a coalition government, since the SJB does not plan to support the NPP, nor has the NPP indicated any intention to form such a government.

“The mandates received by Dissanayake and SJB Leader and Presidential candidate Sajith Premadasa are different. If someone asks us if we're ready to go ahead with Dissanayake, I don't think that there is any need for such. The NPP has also not indicated any such plan. So, there is no need to talk about it.”