Election commission says Sri Lanka poll not possible in June

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka —
Sri Lanka’s honest elections commission acknowledged Wednesday it would possibly well per chance per chance now no longer choose parliamentary elections on June 20 as deliberate attributable to the coronavirus outbreak.

Saliya Peiris, a attorney representing the commission, told the Supreme Court docket that the elections can simplest be held 10 weeks after neatly being authorities repeat stipulations are protected.

Rather a lot of extinct lawmakers and civil teams had complained to the court docket that their fundamental rights were breached by the commission’s earlier choice to make a decision the election on June 20.

The election changed into first and fundamental space for April 25 nevertheless the commission rescheduled it for June. Peiris acknowledged the commission chose that date staring at for the country’s lockdown would possibly per chance per chance be lifted by the terminate of this month.

The petitioners also requested the court docket to annul President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s movement on March 2 to dissolve Parliament and reinstate the frail Parliament because the constitution says the country can now no longer speed with out a legislature for greater than three months.

Parliament’s term changed into to cease in September nevertheless the president has the energy to dissolve it six months before schedule, and also to reconvene it in an emergency. The court docket has now no longer yet acknowledged whether or now no longer this would possibly occasionally fair hear that case.

Sri Lanka has reported 1,027 coronavirus cases along side nine deaths.

The court docket changed into told that candidates advertising and marketing campaign largely by public conferences and canvassing door-to-door, techniques that are now no longer conducive for social distancing.