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Central Committee, not General Secretary, should have sent list of nominees - Counsel

by Wasantha Ramanayake

The General Secretary of the Peoples Alliance (PA) had sent the list of nominees to the first respondent Election Commissioner, to be appointed as the National List MPs from the PA, contrary to the decision of the Central Committee of the Party, submitted petitioner's Counsel L.C. Senevirathne PC when the Writ Application filed by LSSP General Secretary Batty Weerakoon was taken up before the Supreme Court, yesterday.

The Bench comprised Justices Mark Fernando PC, H.S. Yapa and Nihal Jayasinghe. The Counsel contended that the Central Committee was the decision making body that should nominate persons to be appointed as the National List MPs from the PA. He submitted that instead the third respondent General Secretary had sent a list of nominees to the Election Commissioner, who had subsequently declared them as the National List MPs from the PA. Counsel contended that the Election Commissioner was also responsible to return the suitable candidates as Members of the Parliament, not merely mechanically returning the candidates nominated by the General Secretary.

The petitioners Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) and its General Secretary Batty Weerakoon have cited Election Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake, PA, its General Secretary D.M. Jayaratne and nine MPs appointed from the PA National List, in terms of Article 99 A of the Constitution.

Among the other matters, petitioners stated that the LSSP was a constituent party of the PA, and according to a decision taken by the Executive Committee of the PA prior to the 2001 General Election, every constituent party of the PA was entitled to one National List seat in Parliament. Petitioners alleged that the third respondent PA General Secretary D.M. Jayaratne had sent a list of nominees sans a nominee of the LSSP for the said National List, contrary to the Executive Committee decision, to the first respondent Election Commissioner.

Petitioners prayed for; a Writ of Certiorari quashing the decision of the first respondent, to accept the said nominations sent by the third respondent and his decision to declare the said persons elected as the Members of the Parliament, a Writ of Mandamus directing the first respondent to issue a fresh notice to the third respondent to nominate qualified persons as MPs and a Writ of Quo Warranto on the nine respondent MPs and to declare their appointment as MPs by the Extra Ordinary Gazette dated December 11, 2001 was null and void.

L.C. Senevirathne PC appeared for the petitioners. State Counsel Rajeeva Goonathilake appeared for the Election Commissioner.

Nihal Jayamanna PC appeared for the third respondent.

Further hearing was put off October 28.

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