Highlight
- Dullas Alhapparuma receives significant support from opposition parties and MPs
- New President to replace Gotabaya Rajapaksa after resigning amid huge economic crisis
- Wickremesinghe needs 16 more votes to cross the magic figure of 113 in the 225-member House
Sri Lankan presidential election: For the first time in 44 years, Sri Lanka’s parliament will directly elect a president in a triangular contest on Wednesday, with last-minute political maneuvering indicating an edge for Dullas Alhapparuma over caretaker President Ranil Wickremesinghe, as he faces opposition from opposition parties. Significant support was received. As well as most of the MLAs of his parent party.
Wickremesinghe, Alhapparuma and Left-wing Janata Vimukti Peramuna (JVP) leader Anura Kumara Disanayake were on Tuesday proposed as the three candidates for the July 20 presidential election, a popular campaign against their government to choose Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s successor. Resigned after the rebellion. economy that forced them to flee the country.
Most members of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party were in favor of nominating the president and prominent opposition leader Sajith Premadasa as prime minister, Alhapparuma, the leader of their separate faction, for the post of chairman of the SLPP. , J.L. Peirce said Tuesday ahead of the presidential election on Wednesday.
Although analysts believe that 73-year-old Wickremesinghe is leading, the evidence for numbers in the 225-assembly doesn’t necessarily suggest it will be plain sailing.
Without the support of the ruling SLPP, Wickremesinghe would be a non-starter as he only has his seat in Parliament.
Going back to the original parliamentary structure in August 2020, the SLPP strength of 145 saw a reversal with 52 MPs breaking up.
The total 93 later became 97, with 4 MPs returning.
Wickremesinghe needs 16 more votes to cross the magic figure of 113 in the 225-member House. He is dependent on at least 9 of the 12 Tamil party votes as well as substantial defectors from the main opposition Samagi Jana Balvegaya (SJB), most of whom are his followers who were introduced into politics by him.
Meanwhile, in a politically significant move, the leader of the major opposition SJB, Premadasa, on Tuesday extended his support to Alhapparuma.
Alhapparuma expressed his gratitude for supporting Premadasa and withdrawing from the presidential election.
Later Alhapparuma and Premadasa attended a joint press conference, where Premadasa said that he had taken the country forward economically, socially and economically by re-implementing the 19th Amendment to the Constitution to win the democratic rights of the people of the country. Took this decision. culturally.
In another development in favor of Alhapparuma, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) has decided to vote for him in the election.
Sri Lankan media reported that the decision was taken at a meeting of the party’s central committee.
(with inputs from PTI)
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