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Journalism of Courage
Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga dissolved the Parliament today, in an apparent bid to end a bitter power struggle that has threatened to take the country back to war, officials said. Kumaratunga used her executive powers to dissolve the Parliament led by her arch rival Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, setting the stage for a snap election to be held on April 2, almost four years ahead of schedule.
‘‘We have just got the gazette notification for immediate printing,’’ said government printer Neville Nanayakkara who performs a quasi-legal function in the publication of official notices.
He said that Kumaratunga had dissolved the 225-member legislature with immediate effect. There was no immediate reaction from Wickremesinghe’s government to the dissolution, which was widely expected after Kumaratunga last month entered into a pact with a radical Leftist party.
With the dissolution, the Prime Minister and his Cabinet would function in a caretaker capacity with no power to take key decisions. — (PTI)
