Constitutional Crisis: Back To Square One

Nobody is to blame despite constitutional provisions having been violated or made ineffective

- M.S.M. Ayub

After the Supreme Court five-judge-bench headed by Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya unanimously refused to grant leave to proceed on Tuesday with eight fundamental rights petitions filed challenging the dissolution of Parliament and holding the general election on June 20, all issues are back to square one.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa dissolved Parliament on March 2. The Constitution says: “A proclamation dissolving Parliament shall fix a date or dates for the election of Members of Parliament and shall summon the new Parliament to meet on a date not later than three months after the date of such proclamation.” Then, is summoning the new Parliament after June 2 legal, whereas it has to meet before that date, according to the Constitution?

Parliament did not meet on May 14, the date President Rajapaksa fixed for the matter. Has the Constitution been violated due to the fact that Parliament did not meet on that date or on a date “not later than three months” after the dissolution of Parliament? If so, by whom? Can the President assign another date to convene Parliament? What are the constitutional provisions for it? Isn’t this a constitutional crisis?

The President held a meeting on April 24 at the Presidential Secretariat with prominent monks who are supportive of the government. During the meeting, the opposition’s demand to reconvene the dissolved Parliament was discussed. The President told the gathering that he would convene Parliament whenever it is possible. Practically, it is the only option left with him now, since he further told he would not reconvene Parliament. But under what constitutional provision is he going to do so? Would it be legal?