Supreme Court has decided that East should be de-merged from North. The decision was given today at about 11.35 a.m.
A bench of five judges comprising of Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva, Supreme Court Judges Nihal Jayasinghe, N.K. Udalagama, Nimal Gamini Amaratunga and Rupa Fernando agreed to the submissions to the petition filed by the JVP that the North and the East should be separated and administered as two separate provinces.
The petitioners were JVP Parliamentarians for Trincomalee and Digamadulla Messrs. Jayanthe Wijesekera and Wasanthe Piyatissa respectively and a resident of Digamadulla.
The respondents were the Governor for North and East, Commissioner of Elections and Attorney General.
The counselors for the petitioners were Messrs. H.L. de Silva, S.L. Gunasekera and Gomin Dayasiri.
The North and the East were merged as a solution suggested by Indo-Lanka pact signed between then president Mr. J.R. Jayawardene and Indian PM Mr. Rajiv Gandhi who was assassinated by tiger terrorists. Hundreds of patriots were killed when patriotic forces in the country including the JVP protested against the merge.
Mr. Wimal Weerawansa, Information Secretary of the JVP speaking after the decision was given said the JVP was able to correct a wrong that had existed for 19 years and thanked the counselors for the petitioners for their contribution for the unitary state of the Motherland.
Counselor Mr. H.L. de Silva said Supreme Court accepted all the submissions made by the petitioners.
