• If P’ment dissolved by Prez this week & Poll held within 52-days

If the Parliamentary Election is held within 52 days after the dissolution of the Parliament within the course of this week, there will be no legal impediment to proceed with the actions related to the Presidential Election, claimed Opposition Parliamentarian Prof. G.L. Peiris.

Speaking at a press conference held yesterday (27), he also stated that there is a suspicion among the people as to whether the Parliamentary Election or the Presidential Election will be held first. He noted that the Presidential Election must be held first on the scheduled dates, claiming that it will definitely be held in three and a half months. "If the President dissolves the Parliament this week and the Parliamentary Election is held within 52 days, the Government can start the actions related to the Presidential Election thereafter. There is no legal barrier for that. If someone says that there is no time to hold both the Elections, such statements are baseless. But, the decision has to be taken by the President," he claimed. 

He said that the laws have clearly stated that the amount of money allocated for the Presidential Election or a part of it cannot be obtained for the General Election and that if the General Election is held in this context, a separate amount should be allocated from the Consolidated Fund. He noted that holding the Presidential Election and the Parliamentary Election on the same day is not practical as per the existing systems. “There are two methods for the dissolution of the Parliament. After the completion of two and a half years of Parliamentary office, the President can dissolve the Parliament at his/her discretion. The other way is to send a proposal to the President to dissolve the Parliament with the consent of a majority of the MPs in the Parliament,” he said.

Meanwhile, speaking at a meeting, Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said that the Government has allocated funds only for the Presidential Election, and that therefore, there is no financial space to hold two elections in the same year.