Despite the announcement made from Medamulana, a strong sense of uncertainly still looms large over the Rajapaksa camp over the candidacy of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the Parliamentary election. 

 

Lengthy discussions took place among stalwarts of the Rajapaksa camp, over the past two days, to decide whether the former President should contest under the UPFA ticket or as a separate front. "No final decision has so far been made on the matter," a Parliamentarian of the pro-Rajapaksa group told Asian Mirror. 

 

However, at the meeting held at Medamulana on Wednesday, former President gave several indications that he was inclined to contest separately with Wimal Weerawansa, Dinesh Gunawardena, Vasudewa Nanayakkara, Udaya Gammanpila and the SLFP group supporting him. 

 

"He has several options. He can either contest from a district or come to Parliament from the national list. It is better if he can come from the national list as that will allow him to focus on the overall campaign of the group," the Parliamentarian also added. 

 

Although media reports stated on Tuesday that President Maithripala Sirisena had agreed to give nomination to the former Presidnet, Minister Rajitha Senaratne said yesterday that there was no such decision. Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, another influential figure in the SLFP, expressed similar sentiments on the sidelines of a meeting held in Gampaha yesterday. 

 

The statements made by Kumaratunga and Senaratne have brought the matter back to square one, compelling the pro-Rajapaksa group to explore possibilities of contesting seperately.