SC grants permission to proceed with appeal seeking a ruling that Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala is not qualified to hold a seat in Parliament.

COLOMBO (News 1st);

Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court has granted leave to proceed with a high-profile appeal seeking a ruling that Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala is not qualified to hold a seat in Parliament.

The decision was made after considering an appeal petition filed by former Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna administrative secretary Renuka Perera.

A three-judge bench comprising Justices Janak de Silva, Menaka Wijesundara, and Sampath Wijeratne reviewed the submissions and unanimously determined that the matter warrants a full hearing.

However, the Supreme Court rejected a request by the petitioner’s side to issue an interim order preventing Minister Wijepala from sitting in Parliament and exercising his voting rights until a final determination is made.

The legal dispute originates from an earlier writ petition filed before the Court of Appeal by Renuka Perera, challenging Wijepala’s position as a Member of Parliament on the basis that he had also been serving as Chief of Staff to the President.

The petitioner argued that holding a state position while serving as an MP constitutes a disqualification under constitutional provisions governing parliamentary eligibility.

During proceedings before the Court of Appeal, the Attorney General raised preliminary objections, pointing out that the President had not been named as a respondent in the petition.

It was also argued that despite holding the role of Chief of Staff, Wijepala did not receive any salary from the government in that capacity, making it legally untenable to classify him as a state employee in terms of disqualification criteria.

Accepting these preliminary objections, the Court of Appeal last year dismissed the writ petition without proceeding to a full hearing.

Subsequently, Renuka Perera challenged that decision before the Supreme Court through the present appeal.