Ranil back in Parliament today

• Will take oaths before Speaker in morning; gets front row seat as UNP Leader

UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe will take oaths as a National List MP today.

Wickremesinghe will get a front row seat on the Opposition benches as he is a Party Leader and will be seated next to TNA MP R. Sampanthan.

Wickremesinghe, who contested the election from the Colombo District, did not get enough votes to secure a seat but the UNP won a single bonus seat in Parliament based on the number of votes it polled islandwide.

The UNP’s countrywide tally was 249,435 votes, 2.15% of the total polled. In the Colombo district where the UNP leader contested, the party secured only 30,875 votes.

UNP General Secretary Range Bandara informed the Election Commission last week that the Party had decided to name Wickremesinghe to the post. 

Wickremesinghe first entered Parliament in 1977 and has served in all successive parliaments.