A decision was reached during the Cabinet Meeting held today to declare a State of Emergency in the country for a period of 10 days, Minister S.B. Dissanayake said.
The relevant Gazette notification will be issued shortly, he said while speaking to reporters following a special Cabinet discussion held at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo.
He stated that in the wake of the unrest in the Digana and Teldeniya areas in Kandy yesterday (5), certain accusations have been made that the law was not properly implemented and therefore President Maithripala Sirisena decided to declare a state of emergency.
He stated that while the President has the authority to declare a state of emergency for a period of 10 days, the approval of the Parliament is necessary if that period is to be extended further.
Meanwhile, he added, that the religious leaders and political leaders from the Kandy area will convene a special discussion at the Kandy district secretariat at 4.30pm today (6) with regard to the present situation.
