 |
S. Lanka's Main Opposition Party to Submit No-Confidence Motion Against Govt Minister
Sri Lanka's main opposition United National Party (UNP) is to submit a no-confidence motion against a government minister who is allegedly involved in an ethnic riot at a central town last week.
According to opposition sources, a final decision regarding the motion will be made at the UNP parliamentary group meeting on Wednesday evening.
The security personnel of Minister of Rural Industrial Development Maheepala Herath were allegedly involved in an ethnic riot erupted at Mawanella, 90 kilometers northeast of capital Colombo on Wednesday last week, leaving two dead and over 20 injured in a police shooting.
Herath, however, has denied the allegations.
The UNP also demanded on Tuesday that Herath be removed from office and said it fully supported the demand by the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) for a parliament debate on the issue.
The SLMC, a crucial partner in the ruling People's Alliance (PA) coalition government, threatened on Monday to quit the government, saying it had no moral obligation to do so unless immediate steps were taken to arrest the anti-Muslim trend.
The riot at Mawanella, which was triggered by a dispute over cigarettes between majority Sinhalese and minority Muslims, spread to capital Colombo on Friday.
A large crowd of Muslims took to the street to protest attacks against their community members at Mawanella. The angry crowd hurled stones at police following Friday prayers. A 12-hour curfew was clamped in the capital to prevent escalation of the ethnic rioting.
In This Section
|