The National Election Commission (NEC) remains undecided on who should fill the parliamentary seat that has fallen vacant with the demise of MP Salinda Dissanayake.
The NEC met yesterday (12) to discuss and decide on the filling of the vacant parliamentary seat.
However, it was decided to instruct the Returning Officer (Elections officer) of the Kurunegala District to officially name a suitable candidate to fill the vacant parliamentary seat of the late MP.
The filling of the vacant parliamentary seat has become a controversy with United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) National List MP Shantha Bandara resigning from his seat to fill the vacant seat in Parliament.
The NEC has also decided to inform the UPFA General Secretary, MP Mahinda Amaraweera to name a suitable candidate to fill the vacated National List slot after the resigning of former UPFA National List MP Bandara.
Bandara is next in line in the Kurunegala District list to fill the vacant parliamentary seat. However, he was appointed to parliament as a national list MP and was in parliament at the time of Dissanayake’s demise.
Former North Western Provincial Councillor D.B. Herath had obtained the highest number of preferential votes after Bandara in the last general election from the Kurunegala District.
The issue now is whether the vacant parliamentary seat should be filled by Bandara or Herath.
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