Published 20:15 IST, September 8th 2020
Sri Lanka: Convicted murderer sworn in as MP amid flak from opposition parties
Despite heckling from the opposition, a lawmaker from Sri Lanka on September 8 was escorted out of prison to be sworn in as a member of Parliament
- World News
- 2 min read
Despite heckling from the opposition, a Sri Lankan lawmaker on September 8 was escorted out of prison to be sworn in as a member of Parliament. Premalal Jayasekara, from the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Party (SLPP) in August was convicted of murdering an opposition activist by opening fire at an election rally in 2015. Following which, he was sentenced to death for murder.
However, both his trial and conviction came after he was nominated for the poll conducted on August 5. It meant that he was still eligible to contest the election, which he later won. This has made Jayashankara the first convict in the country’s history to serve as a member of parliament.
No show in first session
Jayasekara was a no show when the first session of parliament was conducted on August 20. However, he petitioned the Court of Appeal which, on September 7 held that he should be escorted from prison to exercise his rights as an MP. His attendance was received with flak from the opposition who wore black shawl and even held a walkout while Jayashankara was taking oath.
An MP since 2001, Jayasekara had opened fire at a stage being set up for an election event by a rival party in 2015 , killing one person.
All this comes as Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is seeking restoration of sweeping executive powers as the newly-elected government has reportedly drafted a bill for constitutional reforms. According to Bloomberg, the amendment would seek more powers for the president, including allowing him to dissolve the parliament one and a half years after it's election than the current four and half years provision.
Updated 20:15 IST, September 8th 2020