By Lakmal Sooriyagoda

In a landmark judgment in the history of elections in Sri Lanka, the Monaragala High Court has declared that the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) candidate who had purportedly won a seat in the Monaragala Pradeshiya Sabha by bribing the voters, as null and void .

According to the judgment,  the election of Tharanga Dissanayaka, a member of Monaragala Pradeshiya Sabha who contested the Local Government Election on the SLPP ticket,  was declared null and void and another SLPP candidate Sunil Shantha who had secured the next highest number of votes was ordered to be appointed to fill the vacant position. Monaragala High Court Judge Ranga Dissanayake made this judgment pursuant to an election petition filed by PAFFREL organization in collaboration along with the losing candidate and the Centre for Monitoring Election Violence, challenging his victory stating the particular candidate had offered various kinds of bribes to the voters during the 2018 Local Government elections.