Minister Lakshman Kiriella stated that the Parliament will be dissolved in about three weeks and asked people to give a mandate to Ranil Wickremesinghe to administer the country for the next few years.

Speaking at a function yesterday at Udunuwara, Kiriella added that it was not correct to describe the questioning of former ministers and government officials as harassment. He pointed out that the government was not taking people to Bribery Commission or other institutions on trumped-up charges.

Kiriella said that certain people have amassed immense wealth during the former government’s term. These should be probed, he stressed. However, he pointed out that no innocent party will be harmed.

President Maithripala Sirisena recently said that the Parliament will be dissolved after the Constitutional Council, established under the 19th Amendment, is appointed. Opposition politicians accuse the government of political ‘witch hunting’ in the wake of parliamentary elections.