Serious repercussions inevitable if LG polls put off: AKD

If the government attempts to postpone the Local Government election, it would stir serious repercussions just as what happened in the past, National People's Power (NPP) MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake said today.

He told Parliament that the people, who are under immense pressure without being able to meet their basic needs, should be given an opportunity to express their feelings via an election.

"The government is not allowing people to express their hardships through street protests and now they are trying to curb their freedom to express their difficulties through an election. It will have serious consequences. When JR Jayewardene postponed elections in 1982, it led to a 30-year long war," he said.

Mr. Dissanayake said the government is in fear of an election as it is well aware that it would lose its mandate once defeated in the LG polls. (Ajith Siriwardana and Yohan Perera)