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Murder-convict MP taking oaths: AG won’t appeal against CA’s order
The Attorney General does not intend to go before the Supreme Court to appeal against the interim order issued by the Court of Appeal ordering the Prisons Commissioner General to allow murder convict Premalal Jayasekara to attend Parliament sittings, the Sunday Times learns.
This is despite the AG earlier taking up the position in the Court of Appeal that according to Article 89(d) of the Constitution, a person “under sentence of death” was disqualified from being an elector. The AG had also cited Article 91(1)(a), which notes that no person can be elected as an MP or sit and vote in Parliament if he “becomes subject to any of the disqualifications specified in Article 89.”
In its judgment, however, the Court of Appeal noted that Articles 89 and 91 “do not prohibit the oath taking of an elected Member of Parliament when his election remains valid and unimpeached.”
“The absence of any prohibition in the Constitution on oath taking appears to be an intentional omission and we would make the observation that as long as the election of the Petitioner remains valid and effectual, he cannot be prevented from attending Parliament and taking his oaths,” the CA said in its judgment.
The Court said its view was that the Petitioner “would be clothed with all the rights of an elected Member of Parliament.” Nevertheless, it also noted that the question of sitting and voting in Parliament did not arise before it as it is the province of the Speaker or any other competent body to deal with that matter.
The MP took his oaths and spoke in Parliament amidst angry protests by Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya MPs who wore black shawls followed by a walkout.
The MP went back to prison after Parliament sittings.