Category: News

The Chairman of the Election Commission, R.M.A.L. Ratnayake, stated that the counting of votes for the general election will commence at 4.15 p.m. on November 14.

He made these remarks during a special press briefing held today (12) at the Department of Government Information, where he provided updates on the general election.

Ratnayake also informed that the results from polling areas and district-level results will be released to the media only after being re-checked and approved by the Election Commission. Thus, he urged everyone to refrain from releasing unofficial election results.

“Arrangements have been made to begin counting postal votes at 4.15 p.m. on November 14. The counting of regular votes will start after receiving the ballot boxes from the respective polling stations at around 7.15 p.m., following the completion of the official procedures. Afterwards, arrangements will be made to release the results to the media. Until then, everyone is requested to refrain from releasing unofficial results,” he said.

Ratnayake also shared details about the vote-counting process, which will be carried out in three phases:

“The counting of votes takes place in three stages. First, the votes in each box are counted. Then, the votes received by each recognized political party and independent group are counted. At the end of that process, the number of MPs that can be elected from each party or group is calculated according to the votes, followed by the counting of preferential votes received by each candidate. After that, the candidates from these parties and groups will be elected for the position of MP based on the highest number of votes they received,” he explained.

The candidates from the parties and independent groups will be elected to the position of MP based on the highest number of votes they have obtained, according to the Election Commission chairman.

The Deputy Postmaster General (Operations), Rajitha K. Ranasinghe announced that the distribution of official polling cards for the 2024 General Election has been completed.

According to Ranasinghe, 97% of the total official polling cards have been distributed.

He stated that those who have not received their official polling cards as of yet, can visit their local post office during working hours to collect them. He further said that this will be in effect until the date of the election.

“So far, 97% of the official polling cards have been distributed. We have received more than 171 million official polling cards from the Election Commission. So far, we have been able to distribute more than 165 million polling cards,” Ranasinghe added.

The Deputy Postmaster General further stated that the distribution process requires recipients to sign for their polling cards and if a recipient was not home at the time of delivery, the polling cards are being held at their designated post office.

“Therefore, if anyone has not stayed at home on weekdays, the postal department has made it possible for them to go to their local post office, verify their identity and receive their official polling cards until November 14, which is the day of the election,” he said.

However, the absence of an official polling card would not hinder the voters from exercising their right to vote, if they are able to provide necessary identification documents.

The inaugural session of the Tenth Parliament, with 196 members elected by public vote and 29 members entering through the national list, is scheduled to commence on November 21.

A total of 225 members of parliament will be elected in the upcoming general election on November 14.

A series of special proceedings expected to take place on that day, including the appointment of Speaker, the Parliament of Sri Lanka said in a statement.

On the first day, the primary responsibilities within the Chamber are entrusted to the Secretary-General of Parliament.

Members of parliament are not assigned specific seating arrangements on this day and are allowed to sit in any seat of their choice.

The full outline of the day’s proceedings is reproduced below:

First day of the new Parliament

The upcoming general election to elect Members of Parliament for the Tenth Parliament is scheduled for November 14. Through this election, a total of 225 Members of Parliament will be elected, comprising 196 members elected by public vote and 29 members entering through the national list.

The inaugural session of the Tenth Parliament, comprising of members through this process, is scheduled to commence on November 21, as per the Extraordinary Gazette Notification No. 2403/13 dated 2024.09.24 issued by the President.

The first day of Parliament’s inaugural session holds particular significance due to the series of special proceedings expected to take place on that day.

On the first day, the primary responsibilities within the Chamber are entrusted to the Secretary-General of Parliament. Members of Parliament are not assigned specific seating arrangements on this day and are allowed to sit in any seat of their choice. Following the placement of the mace in the Chamber, the Secretary-General will present to Parliament, as the first business of the day, the Extraordinary Gazette Notification issued by the President, which specifies the date and time for the convening of Parliament.

Subsequently, in accordance with Article 64 (1) of the Constitution and Standing Orders 4, 5, and 6 of Parliament, the Speaker is elected by vote, followed by the administration of the official affirmation or oath of office by the Speaker. Thereafter, Members of Parliament take their official affirmation or oath, and the Deputy Speaker and Deputy Chairperson of Committees are elected by vote.

Electing the Speaker

Any Member of Parliament may be appointed as the Speaker. However, prior to nominating a member for the position, it is essential to confirm that the Member is willing to accept the appointment. The election of the Speaker must proceed based solely on the nominations made by Members, without allowing any debate on the matter.

At this stage, the Secretary-General informs the House that the Speaker must be appointed first. When a member rises to propose a name, the Secretary-General directs the House’s attention to that Member’s nomination. After one name has been proposed, the Secretary-General must ask if there are any other nominations. If no other nominations are presented, that Member is duly elected as Speaker.

It is a long-standing tradition for the two Members who formally proposed and seconded the name of the Speaker to escort the elected Member to the Speaker’s chair, holding them by the arms. The Speaker then takes their official affirmation or oath of office before the Secretary-General. Before taking their seat, it is customary for the newly appointed Speaker to briefly thank the House for the appointment.

Congratulatory remarks are then offered by both the government and opposition representatives, after which the Speaker delivers a statement of thanks. Following this, the remaining Members proceed to take their official affirmation or oath before the Speaker.

When the names of two Members are proposed for the position of Speaker, a secret ballot is conducted. There are two instances in parliamentary procedure when a secret ballot is held: during the election of the Speaker, Deputy Speaker, Deputy Chairperson of Committees, and also when Parliament elects a President.

During the ballot, a continuous five-minute Quorum Bell shall signal Members to prepare. The Secretary-General then distributes ballot papers to each Member, who must write the name of their chosen candidate and sign the paper. Members then fold the ballot paper discreetly and place it in the ballot box.

The authority to determine the voting method and to conduct the count rests solely with the Secretary-General, who tallies the votes at the Table of Parliament. After counting, the Secretary-General announces the result to the House. If a ballot paper lacks the Member’s signature, it is deemed invalid.

If three Members are proposed for the position of Speaker and no candidate secures an absolute majority in the vote, the candidate with the least number of votes shall be eliminated, and a new round of voting is conducted. The candidate who then receives the majority of votes is elected as Speaker.

Similarly, in instances where multiple Members are proposed, successive rounds of voting are held, eliminating the candidate with the least votes each time, until one candidate secures an absolute majority. At any point, if a candidate achieves an absolute majority, they are immediately elected as Speaker.

In cases where three Members stand for election and two of them receive an equal number of votes, the Secretary-General has the authority to eliminate one of the tied candidates by drawing lots. Following this, a vote is held between the remaining candidate and the candidate with the highest votes, and the Speaker is selected based on the results.

If there is a vote between two candidates and both receive an equal number of votes, a re-vote is conducted. Should there still be a tie after this second vote, the Secretary-General has the authority to select the Speaker by drawing lots. The Secretary-General has full discretion to determine the procedure for drawing lots.

Following the conclusion of a vote, the corresponding ballot papers must be kept under the custody of the Secretary-General for a period of one month. After this period, they should be destroyed in accordance with the directive from Parliament, and a report of this destruction must be submitted to Parliament.

All Members of Parliament elected must sign the Member roll after taking their oath or affirmation on the first day. The Speaker signs first, followed by the Prime Minister as a tradition, after which the other Members affix their signatures. This signed record is maintained as a highly secure document in accordance with established protocols.

When the Deputy Speaker and Deputy Chairperson of Committees are to be elected, the Speaker, having already been appointed, conducts all notifications and voting procedures. After nominations for the Deputy Speaker and Deputy Chairperson are made, the Speaker will ask the House if there are any further nominations. If none are forthcoming, the nominated Members are elected to their respective positions.

Should a vote be necessary, the procedure followed will mirror that of the election of the Speaker, with the notable difference that the voting will be conducted by the Speaker instead of the Secretary-General.

After these activities are completed, Parliament will be adjourned. Typically, the adjournment will be until the next scheduled parliamentary day.

However, according to Article 33 of the Constitution, if the President addresses Parliament on that day to present government policy statement, the House will be temporarily suspended at the end of these initial proceedings. When Parliament reconvenes, the President will preside over the House and present the government policy statement.

Following the policy statement the President will then adjourn Parliament until the next scheduled day.

Senior Deputy Postmaster General Rajitha Ranasinghe says approximately 500,000 official Polling Cards for the 2024 general election still remain at post offices.

He added that official polling cards of those overseas and who were not present in their residences remain.

However, The Senior Deputy Postmaster General Rajitha Ranasinghe stated that 76,000 official polling cards were collected by voters within the past two days.

The distribution of official Polling Cards for the 2024 general election concluded on the 7th of November 2024.

Senior Deputy Postmaster General Rajitha Ranasinghe says that official polling cards can also be obtained on the election day from the nearest post office upon confirmation of identity.

Former Chief Minister of the Eastern Province Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pilleyan has been summoned to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) tomorrow (12), in order to record a statement related to the allegations in the documentary aired by British television network ‘Channel 4’ on the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks in Sri Lanka.

Speaking at a press conference held today (11), Police Media Spokesman DIG Nihal Thalduwa said that the CID has launched a probe into the relevant incident as per a complaint lodged by an organization with the Ministry of Public Security against the statement made by Azad Maulana to Channel 4 on the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks.

He said that accordingly, an investigation was launched by the CID into the controversial statements made by several individuals regarding the Easter attacks.

On 06 September 2023, Channel 4 aired a controversial documentary containing startling accusations relating to the bombings on Easter Sunday (April 21) in 2019 which targeted several Catholic churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka. The carnage claimed the lives of more than 260 people and left hundreds of others wounded.

Channel 4’s new ‘Dispatches’ investigation titled ‘Sri Lanka’s Easter Bombings’ is a nearly 50-minute-long videos with serious, yet straightforward allegations about the attacks. It was based on the testimonies of high-placed whistleblowers who alleged that senior governmental officials were complicit in this heinous act.

The main whistleblower Hanzeer Azad Maulana was a spokesman for LTTE’s breakaway group Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pullikal (TMVP) led by former MP Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillayan.

According to the documentary, Maulana, who has sought asylum overseas after facing fraud charges here, has witnessed a meeting in Puttalam in 2018, between the suicide bombers and a top Sri Lankan intelligence officer prior to the Easter Sunday attacks.

Claiming that he had, on the directives of Pillayan, arranged the said meeting between then-army intelligence chief Major General Suresh Sallay and the National Thowheed Jamaath (NTJ) members including its leader Zahran Hashim, Maulana said the plot to create insecurity in the country to pave way for former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to win the presidential election later in 2019 was hatched over 2-3 years.

The documentary, which recapped the country’s political situation, also gave a lengthy commentary on former presidents Mahinda Rajapaksa and Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s time in power and their attempts to return to power after election defeats.

Recalling the 2009 disappearance of journalist Lasantha Wickrematunga who was a prominent critic of the then-government, the ‘Dispatches’ investigation video claimed that Mahinda Rajapaksa’s administration had formed a clandestine death squad called the ‘Tripoli Platoon’ with the support of Pillayan’s group to crack down on anti-government media persons.

It had interviewed former senior CID officer Nishantha Silva who was investigating the disappearance of Wickrematunga. He claimed that he found phone record evidence putting ‘Tripoli Platoon’ members at the scene and that Gotabaya Rajapaksa had ‘direct monitoring’ of this death squad.

The documentary also presented testimonies from His Eminence Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, journalist Frederica Jansz who was a witness in the ‘White Flag’ case, the brother of journalist Lasantha Wickrematunga, former commissioner of Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) Ambika Satkunanathan and former diplomat Sarath Kongahage.

However, Kongahage later accused the British television network of distorting his comments from the interview. Calling a media briefing on September 12, 2023, the former ambassador said Channel 4 had used his remarks out of context.

Indian Navy submarine INS Vela arrived in Colombo on November 10 on a three-day visit, India’s High Commission (embassy) in Colombo said.

INS Vela a Kalvari-class diesel-electric submarine, commissioned on November 25, 2021.

The visit is classified as an Operational Turn Around (OTR), where the submarine will replenish provisions, the Indian embassy said.

The crew will have the opportunity of visiting places of interest in and around Colombo.

Commander Kapil Kumaris will call on the Commander of the Western Naval Area, Rear Admiral WDCU Kumarasinghe at Western Naval Headquarters. Personnel from Sri Lanka Navy and High Commission of India will also visit the sub.

A basketball match is planned between the Submarine crew and SLN personnel at Sri Lanka Naval Base in Welisara.

The submarine will depart the island on 13 November 2024.