Another fundamental rights petition has been filed in the Supreme Court against the appointment of Dhammika Perera to fill the vacancy left by Basil Rajapaksa as the National List Member of Parliament for the SLPP.
Accordingly, the petition seeks an order restraining Dhammika Perera from being sworn in as a Member of Parliament and invalidating the gazette notification issued by the Election Commission appointing him as a Member of Parliament.
The petition was filed by Roel Raymond, editor-in-chief of the Roar website.
According to the petition, Dhammika Perera’s name was not included in the district nomination lists or national lists of the Sri Lanka People’s Front in the 2020 general election and his appointment as a Member of Parliament for that party is unconstitutional.
The General Secretary of the SLPP Sagara Kariyawasam, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, the Secretary General of Parliament, members of the Election Commission and the Attorney General have been named as respondents in this petition.
The Executive Director of the Center for Policy Alternatives, Pakyasothy Saravanamuttu, had earlier filed a fundamental rights petition in the Supreme Court against Dhammika Perera’s appointment as a Parliament Member.