News
ITAK’s backing for Sajith redefines Tamil vote in North and East – Sumanthiran
By Rathindra Kuruwita
Political dynamics in the North and East had shifted significantly following the decision of the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK), the leading party representing Tamil interests, to support the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) candidate for the presidency, according to ITAK MP M.A. Sumanthiran, who discussed this development in a recent televised interview.
Asked whether the Tamil electorate in the North and East would be divided among the four main contenders, Sumanthiran said it would not be the case.
“Once we decide to support the SJB Sajith Premadasa, the majority of votes will clearly go to Sajith,” .
He said that, at present, the two major candidates in the race are Sajith Premadasa and Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the National People’s Power (NPP). “We have decided to support Sajith,” he said.
Sumanthiran also dismissed the idea of fielding a common Tamil candidate, calling it a misguided strategy since such a candidate stood no chance of winning the presidency. He noted that P. Ariyanethran contesting the election would not benefit the Tamil community.
“In the 2019 election, we supported Sajith, and we will continue to support him in 2024,” Sumanthiran added, estimating that the Tamil voter base in the North and East consisted of about a million votes. He added that while those votes had previously been split among Sajith, Anura, and Ranil Wickremesinghe, ITAK’s backing of Sajith had now altered the electoral landscape.
“There’s no formal agreement with Sajith,” Sumanthiran said. “We don’t know Anura well, and we know Ranil too well, and that is why we rejected him. Ranil won the Northern vote in the past because Tamils were voting against the Rajapaksas. But now that he’s aligned with the Rajapaksa faction, our people will not support a Ranil-Rajapaksa coalition.”
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land, and Irrigation to provide the required provisions to purchase the green gram harvest in a competitive manner with the private sector by expanding the program initiated by the National Food Promotion Board, on the advice of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land, and Irrigation,
Green gram has been cultivated in an area of about 16,500 hectares in the 2025 Yala Season and intermediate season and a harvest of about 14,600 metric tons of green gram is expected. Currently, green gram harvesting has started in the Hambantota district, and it has been reported that middlemen are buying the harvest for a low price of Rs. 450/- per kilogram.
Approval has been granted at the cabinet meeting held on 08-02-2021 to award 326 bridge construction contracts to the State Development and Construction Corporation for the construction of bridges across the island under the Rural Bridges Program.
The construction of a further 23 bridges has been assigned to the Road Development Authority.
It had been decided in the year 2022, to stop the construction of 184 bridges, where construction had not been initiated. The construction of 45 bridges from the 142 remaining bridges have already been completed.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Transport, Highways, and Urban
Development to recommence the construction of the remaining 74 bridges by the State Development and Construction Corporation and to complete the construction expeditiously.
Policy approval of the Cabinet of Ministers was granted at their meeting held on 16.06.2025 to repeal the Parliamentary Pension Act No. 1 of 1971 of the State Council.
In keeping with the promise given to all Sri Lankans who supported the vision of ‘A wealthy country – A beautiful life’ which appeared in the policy declaration of the Government, a draft bill has been prepared by the Legal Draftsmen for
repealing the Parliamentary Pension Act with the objective of cancelling pensions rights given to elected members of the Parliament and their spouses.
As the Attorney General has given clearance to the draft bill, the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers was granted to the proposal submitted by the Minister of Justic and National Integration to publish the said draft bill in the government gazette notification and subsequently to be presented to the Parliament for its concurrence.
Vijayakanth Viyaskanth added to Sri Lanka squad for tri-series
Purchasing of 2025 green gram harvest
Cabinet approves the completion 74 bridges under the Rural Bridge Program
‘Heartbroken’ Alcaraz pulls out of Davis Cup Finals
Parliamentary Pension Act No. 1 of 1971 to be repelled
Cabinet nod to appoint Dr. (Eng.) K. Waligepolage as Director General of Irrigation
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
Sunday Island 27 December – Headlines
#SundayIsland 17th December – Headlines
Sunday Island – 28th March
Sunday Island Headlines – 21 March
Sunday Island – 21st February – Headlines
-
Foreign News2 days agoSearch continues for Royal Navy crew member missing off Donegal coast
-
Sports6 days agoAn opportunity missed for Sri Lanka
-
Features6 days agoMiss Universe 2025 More ‘surprises’ before Crowning day!
-
Opinion7 days agoContributions of Tea Research Institute of Sri Lanka and its future role
-
News6 days agoOxford Walk raises $13,000 for rural communities in Sri Lanka
-
Features5 days agoTraffic chaos in Kandy: Urgent government intervention needed
-
Business6 days agoDialog and MEPA Unveil Sri Lanka’s First 5G-Enabled Autonomous Water-Surface Cleaning Robot
-
Features6 days agoThe ‘Art’ of Diplomacy