Jagath Priyankara sworn in as MP

L.K. Jagath Priyankara has been sworn in as a Member of Parliament to fill the seat left vacant following the death of State Minister Sanath Nishantha who represented the SLPP in Puttalam constituency.

The new MP took oaths before Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena shortly after the parliamentary session kicked off at 9.30 a.m. this morning (Feb.08).

Subsequently, he signed the MPs roll kept before the Secretary-General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadeera.

Priyankara is a member of the National Freedom Front (Jathika Nidahas Peramuna) led by MP Wimal Weerawansa. A Samurdhi manager by profession, he is also the convener of the Samurdhi National Organization Centre.

Born in 1979, Priyankara had contested the 2015 General Election under the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and was placed 5th in the district after obtaining 31,424 preferential votes. Later, in 2017, he contested the Local Government (LG) elections under SLPP and was elected as one of its members. In the 2020 General Election, Priyankara secured 40,724 votes and was placed sixth in the district.

State Minister Sanath Nishantha, 48, and his security officer suffered tragic deaths in a crash that took place on the Colombo - Katunayake expressway on January 25. The lawmaker’s driver, however, survived the accident.

The car, which they had been travelling in, had crashed against the roadside barrier on the Katunayake Expressway, after rear-ending a moving container truck. The group were returning from a wedding ceremony held at a hotel in Chilaw

A day after the accident, the Parliament informed the Election Commission of the MP seat left vacant by the demise of Sanath Nishantha.

Later, the Election Commission issued a statement announcing that NFF member L.K. Jagath Priyankara’s name was gazette to fill the vacancy in the parliament.