Author: TELO Admin

Legal action will be taken against Local Government (LG) election candidates who fail to submit their financial disclosures in line with the provisions of the Election Expenditure Regulation Act No. 03 of 2023, Chairman of the Election Commission R.M.A.L. Rathnayake has said.

Chairman Rathnayake noted that according to the law, expense reports must be submitted within 21 days after the conclusion of the election.

These reports must be handed over to the Returning Officers of the respective electoral districts before midnight today (27). Elections Chief R.M.A.L. Rathnayake said expense reports can be submitted in person, and if that is not possible, a special website has been set up by the Commission for this purpose. Furthermore, he stated that all election offices across the country will remain open until midnight to facilitate the submission of these expense reports.

Chairman Rathnayake stressed that the deadline will not be extended under any circumstances.

The Chairman of the Election Commission noted that every candidate and political party is required to submit the relevant expense reports, whether they incurred any expenses or not, and if no expenses were made, a note to that effect must also be submitted.

The Chairman of the Election Commission further stated that information about those who fail to submit the reports by midnight will be forwarded to the relevant police stations.

Accordingly, the Election Commission will take legal action against them in the future under the provisions of the election law, Chairman R.M.A.L. Rathnayake further noted.

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that the government has no intention of acquiring the lands owned by the people of the Northern and Eastern provinces and that the aim of the government is to promptly return land ownership to those who rightfully own them.

The prime Minister made these remarks while addressing a discussion held yesterday (23) in the Committee Room No. 1 of Parliament in regards to resolving the issues related to land ownership faced by the people of the Northern and Eastern provinces, according to the Prime Minister’s Media Division.

Members of Parliament representing the North and East pointed out that there is a prevailing suspicion among the public due to the procedures followed by previous governments in clarifying land ownership in these regions and that many rightful landowners lack proper documentation to prove ownership while emphasizing the need for a structured process that regains public trust.

They further stated that some individuals have fraudulently taken possession of lands and expressed that the people trust the current government to deliver a fair solution to the issue, the statement said.

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya reiterated that the government has agreed the granting of the land ownership to the people should be conducted in a legal and verified manner through a proper mechanism that eliminates public doubts and further emphasized that the government has no intention in acquiring the lands from the people under any circumstances.

Accordingly, the Prime Minister informed officials that the government will engage in discussions with the people and relevant sectors to find an appropriate solution and will take necessary future steps in this regard, it added.

The event was attended by Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation K.D. Lalkantha, Deputy Minister Susil Ranasinghe, and Secretary to the Ministry D.P. Wickramasinghe, Additional Solicitor General Vikum De Abrew, Secretary to the Prime Minister Pradeep Saputhanthri, public representatives from the Northern and Eastern provinces, and officials representing government institutions including the Department of Land Registration and the Department of Survey, as well as District Secretaries and other participants.

An Indian delegation led by the Ministry of Mines, comprising representatives from leading Indian public sector mining companies, visited Sri Lanka’s key mining sites and met the island nation’s top officials as it explored potential collaborations in the mines and minerals sector.

The delegation met Sunil Handunnetti, Minister of Industries and Entrepreneurship Development.

The members of the delegation also held discussions with the Chairpersons of key Sri Lankan mineral sector State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), including Kahatagaha Graphite Lanka Ltd., Lanka Mineral Sands Ltd., Geological Survey and Mines Bureau (GSMB), and Lanka Phosphate Ltd., among others, the Indian High Commission in Colombo said in a statement.

They also met with the Director General of the Board of Investment (BOI) and other senior government officials.

“The purpose of the visit was to explore investment and collaboration opportunities, promote technical cooperation in advanced mining technologies, and discuss joint initiatives for value addition in the mineral sector,” it said.

The visit was after the initial meeting between India’s Union Minister of State for Coal & Mines Shri Satish Chandra Dubey and Handunnetti held on 15 February 2025 in New Delhi on enhancing cooperation in the minerals sector.

“The Indian delegation also undertook site visits to key mining locations in Sri Lanka, gaining valuable insights into the operational landscape and exploring areas for future collaboration.”

According to the state-run Board of Investment (BOI) data, Sri Lanka has 7.5 million metric tons (MT) of Ilmenite/Rutile/Zircon deposits in both Eastern coastal town of Pulmudai in Trincomalee district and Northwestern coastal town of Puttalam, 45,000 MT of graphite, and 60 million MT of Apatite.

Both India and Pakistan are given market access to the deposits with duty concession under Indo-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (ISLFTA) and Pakistan-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (PSLFTA) with 100 percent duty free for any machinery related to the mining business.

The previous government attempted to finalize 10 mining companies which have been looking to invest in the island nation’s mining for a long time with some changes to the mining regulation, but it could not complete the process before its electoral defeat in September 2024.

Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s Cabinet in August 2023 approved several proposals aimed at promoting foreign and local investment in the country’s mineral industry to boost revenues in a sector which has been long dragged by corruption.

The previous government changed a key regulation which said companies given mining approval should start value addition from day 1.

The regulation changed to allow mining companies to export the minerals either for 24 months or a maximum 30 percent of the grids without value addition. The licensee then could put up a value addition plant.

Sri Lanka exports the minerals to the United States, United Kingdom, China, India, and Pakistan. The island nation earned around $25 million in 2024, less than half it exported in 2022, Central Bank data showed.

India has been eyeing Sri Lanka’s mineral resource rich port district for decades.

A mineral sand deposit in Sri Lanka’s northern part contains Ilmenite, Rutile, Zircon, Monazite, Garnet, Sillimanite, and other heavy minerals, Export Development Board (EDB) data shows.

All political parties and independent groups have been requested once again to promptly provide details of all elected members for local government bodies based on the results of the recently concluded election.

Chairman of the National Election Commission R.M.A.L. Rathnayake noted that once the relevant information is received, steps will be taken to publish the names of the elected members in the Gazette according to the respective local government bodies.

Meanwhile, Chairman R.M.A.L. Rathnayake also stated that all candidates, political parties, and independent groups who have not submitted their income and expenditure reports related to the local government elections should submit the relevant documents before May 27.