Charges against ex-Deputy Minister to be taken up within this week

The charges against former Deputy Minister Mervyn Silva would be forwarded to the Party disciplinary committee within the week and further action would initiated depending on their findings, Health Minister cum SLFP General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena said yesterday.

He said that a preliminary decision had been taken to remove Mervyn Silva from the Party membership on disciplinary grounds at a meeting held at Temple Trees Tuesday chaired by President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The party office bearers had proposed to the President to remove him from the Highways Deputy Minister portfolio as well, he added.

The President removed him from the post of Highways Deputy Minister Tuesday.

Minister Sirisena also said that former Deputy Minister Silva had been removed from the Party to conduct a disciplinary inquiry into certain allegations levelled against his conduct.

His portfolio as the party organizer for the Kelaniya electorate too had been suspended until a final decision is taken, he noted.

The Minister confirmed that Mervyn Silva’s party membership and the Deputy Minister portfolio had been taken away acting on complaints received into his conduct in an incident where he had allegedly tied a Samurdhi officer to a tree in Kelaniya on August 3, for failing to attend a dengue prevention program organized by the Government.

The Samurdhi officers had complained to the President about the incident and islandwide protests too were held in protest of the incident.