The United National Party (UNP) has issued a statement raising concerns over President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s comments at the 36th Il Maha Viru Samaruma, particularly his remark that “a crown did not fall on our head by drifting down a drain.”
The UNP notes that this specific statement, made during the President’s speech at the commemoration, was omitted from the official press release titled “Remarks by Comrade Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the 36th Il Maha Viru Samaruma.” The party alleges that this omission was deliberate.
The statement further questions whether the President was hinting at reviving forms of governance linked to pre-1972 constitutional arrangements, including the concept of “oath-wearing rulers” that was abolished under the First Republican Constitution.
The UNP recalls that President Dissanayake took his oath to uphold the sovereignty of the people, and that Sri Lanka’s Second Republican Constitution was established following the principles of the first, including a referendum for confirming popular sovereignty.
The party also outlines Sri Lanka’s constitutional history, noting that independence was first granted as a dominion, with King George VI legally recognised as the King of Ceylon. Queen Elizabeth II later succeeded him under the Royal Titles Act. It was the Constituent Assembly in 1972, with participation from all parties, that proclaimed the Republic of Sri Lanka and removed the monarchical title through Article 12 of the First Republican Constitution.
The UNP alleges that by questioning these constitutional foundations and referring symbolically to “crowns,” the President appears to be signalling a move away from multi-party democracy toward a one-party system, and potentially undermining the republican framework itself.
The party warns that such attempts must be defeated, pointing out that the President was elected without securing a majority of the popular vote. It calls on all democratic forces to unite in defence of multi-party democracy and the existing republican constitutional order. (Newswire)
