New Left Front leader Wickramabahu Karunaratne said that several minor parties are against the proposed electoral reforms and vowed to stop its implementation.

Addressing a press briefing on Thursday (16) Karunaratne stated that a special meeting was scheduled to be held on April 19 with the participation of all minor parties to discuss on further moves they could take.

“We have to consider what we can do in order to protect proportional representation system” he stressed.

If there is anything to change it should be the current preferential voting system, not the proportional representation system, Karunaratne said. He further said that if UNP decides to change the system, it will be a betrayal of UNP leaders who introduced it.

“We will take legal measures if SLFP and UNP try to pass these changes with the majority they have.” he declared.

Cabinet Spokesperson Dr. Rajitha Senaratne recently said that the SLFP agreed to a mixed electoral system where 165 Members of Parliament will be elected under the first-past-the-post system while 85 will be elected in proportional representation systems.

If electoral system changes are presented to the parliament with 19th Amendment SLFP will support the changes to the constitutions, Senaratnne further said.

Karunaratne slammed this decision and said it was a conspiracy by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa to prevent the implementation of the 19th Amendment with the support of the MPs who are allied to him.