Petition filed against failure to release funds to hold Local Government Election

A man carrying a ballot box for election in Sri Lanka

(Photo by ISHARA S. KODIKARA / AFP via Getty Images)

A fundamental rights petition has been filed with the Supreme Court against the decision taken not to release the funds allocated through the 2023 Budget to the Election Commission for holding the Local Government (LG) election.

The petition has been filed requesting a verdict that the basic human rights of the public have been violated through the related decision.

The petition has been submitted by MP Ranjith Madduma Bandara, the General Secretary of Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), naming a group of individuals including the Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, the Chairman and the members of the Election Commission as the respondents of the petition.

The petition seeks a court order declaring that the respondents have violated the fundamental rights of the public through the relevant decision.