The Hon. Sivagnanam Shritharan
Sivagnanam Shritharan rejected a statement attributed to Hon. Bimal Rathnayake alleging that ITAK won local elections by distributing liquor and money. He said ITAK has historically opposed such practices and stood for the identity, existence and dignity of the Tamil people, while urging responsible conduct in matters affecting inter-ethnic harmony.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Speaker, briefly, I must respond to a statement made yesterday by Hon. Bimal Rathnayake alleging that the ITAK won local elections by distributing liquor and money. I categorically reject and condemn that claim. The ITAK, founded in the 1940s by S.J.V. Chelvanayakam and later symbolically affirmed by the Tamil national leadership in 2004, has never supported liquor distribution or buying votes. Please ensure inter-ethnic harmony is approached responsibly. We stand for the identity, existence and dignity of the Tamil people—not for bribery or inducements.
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Friday, 9 May 2025 ·No. 1748600585013314 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Sivagnanam Shritharan. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 9 May 2025. No. 1748600585013314. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/24748