•  The petitioners state that 28 % of the population of Sri Lanka are  directly dependent on or employed in agriculture and over 40%  are indirectly dependent
•  They said that Dr. Padeniya and Rathana Thera were the chief proponents of the complete ban of chemical fertiliser

By Lakmal Sooriyagoda  

A Fundamental Rights petition was yesterday filed in the Supreme Court seeking a declaration that the government’s decision to ban the use of chemical fertilizer for agriculture in Sri Lanka is unreasonable and illegal.   

Attorney-at-Law Eranda Welianga, Attorney-at-Law Tharaka Deshabhimana and paddy farmer Wijetunga Amaradivakara filed this petition naming former Minister Mahinda Aluthgamage, Dr. Anuruddha Padeniya, Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera and several others as respondents.   

The petitioners state that 28 % of the population of Sri Lanka are directly dependent on or employed in agriculture whereas over 40% of the population are indirectly dependent on agriculture. The Petitioners further state that the contribution of agriculture excluding plantation crops is 7.4% of the Gross Domestic Product in 2019 whereas the contribution of plantation crops (Tea, Rubber, Coconut and minor export crops) to the Gross Domestic Product in 2019 was 4%.  

They further stated that Dr. Padeniya and Rathana Thera were the chief proponents of the complete ban of chemical fertiliser in agriculture, thus causing President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to ban the import of chemical fertiliser to Sri Lanka and effectively causing a severe drop in the crop production of Sri Lanka in all sectors of agriculture, affecting the livelihood of many stakeholders of the agriculture sector, principally the farmer communities.  

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in a public media statement made on or about 18.04.2022 expressly admitted that the banning of chemical fertiliser was a mistake. The said admission by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa demonstrates that he acted arbitrarily in banning chemical fertiliser, the petitioners said.  

The petitioners further alleged that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa completely disregarded the opinions of the agricultural experts and the demands of the farmers, arbitrarily without any valid reason, for the food security of the country. 

• President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s statement demonstrates that he  acted arbitrarily in banning chemical fertiliser