Colombo District Court today issued an enjoining order preventing UNP leader Ranil Wickremasinghe and General Secretary Tissa Attanayake from expelling the party membership of Gampola Municipal Council Chairman Gamini Hettiarachchi till December 1.

Defendants were noticed to appear in court on December 1 by District Judge Sujatha Alahapperuma.

Municipal council chairman had met the president Rajapaksa on November 15 while extending his support to what he termed as the government's development program.

Hettiarachchi has been an active member of the United National Party (UNP) for over twenty-five years and he was the Gampola Mayor for twelve years.

The Chairman met President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the President’s House in Kandy two days. He said that he would commit himself for the victory of the President at the forthcoming Presidential Election. Chief Minister of the Central Province Sarath Ekanayake was also present at the meeting between the President and the Municipal Council Chairman.