The Court of Appeal today (10) ordered the relevant Returning Officers to accept the previously rejected nomination papers, which were disqualified due to issues related to birth certificates, certification by Justices of the Peace, and the oath taken under the 7th Schedule of the Constitution.
Accordingly, the court also ordered the readmission of nearly 35 rejected nomination papers.
A bench comprising the Acting President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Mohamed Lafar Thahir, and Justice Priyantha Fernando issued these orders after hearing petitions filed by political parties and independent groups challenging the rejection of their nomination papers.
Delivering the verdict after a lengthy hearing, the bench stated that the Deputy Solicitor General had pointed out that the Supreme Court, in a Fundamental Rights Petition issued on the 4th, had justified the Returning Officers’ decision to reject the nominations based on issues related to the nomination papers and the oaths certified by the Justices of the Peace.
The Deputy Solicitor General had therefore requested the Court of Appeal to reconsider its previous judgment on this matter and to dismiss the newly filed petitions.
However, the Presiding Judge of the Court of Appeal noted that the Supreme Court had not made that particular conclusion at the time when his court delivered its earlier judgment. He further stated that the Supreme Court’s conclusion was not applicable to the current proceedings.
Accordingly, the judge declared that a writ order would be issued nullifying the decision made by the Returning Officers to reject the relevant nomination papers.
In addition, the judges ordered that another writ be issued directing the Returning Officers to reaccept the rejected nomination papers.
The petitions were filed by political parties including the Podujana Eksath Peramuna, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, Ceylon Workers Congress, and several independent groups.
