State Minister Diana Gamage loses seat, Harsha proposes Mujibur Rahuman
COLOMBO – Outspoken parliamentarian and State Minister of Tourism, Diana Gamage stands to lose her seat in Parliament following a Supreme Court verdict that she is not eligible to be a Member of Parliament.
The apex court delivered the verdict Wednesday (8) concluding the hearing of an appeal filed challenging an Appeals Court decision to dismiss a petition opposing Gamage’s parliamentary membership based on her citizenship status.
Petitioner, civil activist Oshala Herath, sought a ruling that Gamage was unqualified to serve as a Member of the Sri Lankan Parliament as she is a British citizen.
Gamage entered Parliament on the main opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) ticket as a national list MP after the 2020 parliamentary election. She subsequently crossed over to the government of then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Following Rajapaksa’s resignation, she has been serving as State Minister of Tourism under President Ranil Wickremesinghe.
SJB MP Harsha de Silva tweeted moments after the news of the court verdict that former SJB MP Mujibur Rahuman was his ‘choice’, indicating the party’s possible preference to appoint Rahuman to Gamage’s seat.
Rahuman, an elected MP, resigned last year to contest the local government election which has been postponed indefinitely.
Gamage has clashed with SJB and other opposition MPs in Parliament over a number of issues, and the SJB has been especially sensitive to her remarks about the ownership of the party.
The MP has also been a vocal proponent of facilitating more nightlife activities in Colombo and in other tourist hot spots and has spoken in favour of decriminalizing the cultivation of cannabis for export. She has also spoken in favour of regulating sex work.
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