(UTV | COLOMBO) – Denat Paniyandoowage, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) candidate contesting the General Elections from Galle District has withdrawn from contesting and pledged his support to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday.
Major (Rtd) Paniyandoowage has handed over his letter of withdrawal from contesting to Elections Commission Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya yesterday.
In the letter, he said he resigned from the SJB candidacy for Ambalangoda electorate in Galle and decided to do so due to ‘gross injustice’ faced at the SJB district candidates meeting on June 9.
The copies of the letter had been forwarded to SJB General Secretary and Galle District Returning Officer as well.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister’s Media Division said Major (Rtd) Paniyandoowage met with Prime Minister Rajapaksa at the latter’s residence at Wijerama Mawatha in Colombo after the resignation.
Paniyandoowage said he was told by SJB Leader Sajith Premadasa that he could take decisions as he wished in the electorate since he was the organiser. However, at the organiser’s meeting, he had been recognized as just another candidate.
“When I inquired about this from the Galle District Leader, I was told this was a decision taken by the party. I saw that Mr. Premadasa did not take the correct decision and that’s why I resigned. I am disappointed about the leaders. No point in engaging in politics with leaders who have no backbones. That’s why I made this decision,” he said.