Pohottu party seeks CA to validate nominations for Maharagama

 By S.S. Selvanayagam

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna yesterday filed a writ application in the Court of Appeal seeking to validate its nomination paper submitted for the election of members for the Maharagama Urban Council at the forthcoming local polls.

Petitioners Nishantha Wimalachandra, Savithri Gunasekara, Angoda Liyanage Pradeep Chaminda, Wanniarachchige Don Amarapala and Inoka Anuratha Ranaweera cited Returning Officer Damayanthi Wanigasinghe, SLFP Secretary Dumminda Dissanayake, UNP General Secretary Kabir Hashim and JVP Secretary Tilvin Silva as respondents. They filed the writ petition over the rejection of their nomination paper wherein one female candidate has been inadvertently identified as being male.

They seek a declaration from the Court that their nomination paper tendered to the Returning Officer in respect of the election of the members to the Maharagama Urban Council is valid for the purposes of the Local Authorities Elections Ordinance and liable to be received and accepted as valid for the election of members to the Maharagama Urban Council. They claim the decision of the Returning Officer to reject their nomination paper is capricious and erroneous.