SLFP to acquit ‘Jana Satana’ participants

By Chamodi Gunawardana

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Central Committee (CC) will not take disciplinary action against its MPs who were present at the Joint Opposition ‘Jana Satana’ rally in Hyde Park said Minister and SLFP Spokesman Dilan Perera yesterday. 

Justifying the delay in taking action against them Perera said the CC has no reason to do so because they did not make any defamatory remarks of President Maithripala Sirisena or any senior of the party while addressing the rally. 

“The CC cannot find any fault with their participation and we believe the rally was organised within the scope of party’s discipline,” Perera said.

Reporters questioned then why the CC has summoned ten former Local Government heads to party head quarters in regard with the allegation of supporting the Joint Opposition.

In response Perera stressed the CC will take a decision about disciplinary action if required, but only if it is in the party’s interest. 

“The CC summoned those LG heads because they were found guilty of supporting the Joint Opposition at various occasions. If we take disciplinary actions against SLFPers who were at Hyde Park rally it will be a fulfillment of United National Party’s (UNP) contract to divide the party,” he noted.

Perera added “outsiders should not interfere” in the party’s decisions and claimed “some media institutions and UNP contractors” should not concern themselves with the SLFP’s decisions. 

However political sources revealed SLFP was to take disciplinary action against all the SLFPers who supported the Joint Opposition. Earlier SLFP General Secretary Duminda Dissanayake had told media the CC will ‘not think twice’ to eliminate MPs who violated the Party’s discipline. 

“Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga should not fire her personal hate at ex-President Mahinda Rajapaksa and he should not hate President Sirisena. If they control their hate it will help to maintain peace inside the SLFP,” he noted.

Perera further alleged former minister Basil Rajapaksa and several others “are still dreaming to split the SLFP” by creating a new political party.

“The secret process of forming a separate party is still going on, but mature SLFPers such as Mahindananda Aluthgamamage and Kumara Welgama have refused to support the process,” he stated.

“We will defeat all these plans of betrayal by some groups and lead the party towards another victory in the 2020 election to form a SLFP Government,” he stressed.