• Tells Parliament that the President, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and all MPs had attended the party hosted by the Prime Minister 
• Questions double standards of the SLPP 

By Yohan Perera and Ajith Siriwardana   

The government has thrown a party at Temple Trees last night to celebrate the increase of the Value Added Tax (VAT) from 15 percent to 18 percent, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa alleged yesterday.   

 He told Parliament that the President, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and all the MPs had attended the party hosted by the Prime Minister to celebrate the VAT increase which will put the lives of the people into a more disastrous situation.   

The Opposition Leader said the SLPP MP who claimed that he would not participate in the vote for the VAT increase had also attended the party.   

“What is this double standard of the SLPP,” 
he asked.