By Saman Indrajith

Ratnapura District SJB MP Thalatha Atukorale yesterday told Parliament that she never had any intention of becoming a tea plucker and she never would be.

Raising a privilege issue, MP Atukorale said that she was from landed gentry and her family members had been land-owning planters for more than 100 years.

“MP Premalal Jayasekera stated in this House that I had once said I would become a tea plucker if our government could not have him sentenced to death. That is not true. I never wanted to be a tea plucker and I will never go down to that level. I did not make such a wager. MP Jayasekera is a death row convict and I can understand his mindset. Under such mindset he can make statements to evoke public sympathy, but he must not be permitted to breach the privileges of other MPs.”

“Jayasekara also accused me of being involved in the death of one of his relatives in 2001. He has continuously served in this Parliament since 2001. Until 2014, he was a government MP. I have been an MP since 2004. Rather than hurling baseless allegations hiding behind MP’s privileges, why didn’t he push to have his government investigate these allegations and take legal action?”

The SJB MP said that Jayasekara was coming out with the allegations some 20 years later in an attempt to earn sympathy. 

MP Atukorale also scoffed at claims made by the SLPP MP that as the Justice Minister of the yahapalana government, she had once stated that she would resign and go pluck tea leaves if she failed to have him sentenced to death. 

“I became Justice Minister on August 25, 2017. At this time, this case was still ongoing. The honourable judges and officers of the Attorney General’s Department will bear witness that I never brought up this case with them at any time.”

Atukorale said that the death sentence on Jayasekara had been handed down after recording evidence from 42 witnesses. 

She said her only involvement in the case was referring lawyers to act as counsel to watch the interests of the aggrieved party since the victim was someone known to her.