Sri Lanka ends election campaigning for parliamentary polls

Sri Lankan political parties will end its election campaigning on Friday midnight for a parliamentary election on Monday, the Elections Secretariat announced.

Additional Election Commissioner M. M. Mohamed said measures will be taken to ensure that political parties strictly observe the election laws and halt all types of campaigning activities 48 hours before voting gets underway on Aug. 17.

More than 60 political parties and over 100 independent groups are contesting the parliamentary polls which will elect a new 225- member parliament and a new government.

The battle for a majority will be between the two main political parties, the United National Front (UNF) led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and the opposition United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) whose main candidate is former president Mahinda Rajapakse who will be contesting from the north western province of Kurunegala.

The UNF had in its campaigning pledged to re-build the island nation in the next 60 months with the launch of several development projects and offer stable jobs for the youth. Prime Minister Wickremesinghe had expressed confidence in winning the polls and forming a united government with the inclusion of all minority parties.

The UPFA in its campaigning had reiterated to appoint Rajapakse as a future prime minister and form a stable majority government.

The UPFA also has expressed confidence in winning more than 113 seats in parliament to form a new government.