Upcountry Tamil voter's registries to be published in Tamil

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 19 March 2008, 09:49 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Commissioner of Elections Tuesday informed the SL Supreme Court that he has taken steps to publish voters' registers of plantation areas also in Tamil. The State Counsel appearing on behalf of the Commissioner of Elections submitted the latter's response to the three member-bench of the Supreme Court when the Fundamental Rights violation filed by the Ceylon Workers United Front (CWUF) came up for further inquiry on Tuesday, legal sources said.

The three member bench of the Supreme Court chaired by the Chief Justice Sarath Silva decided to call the FR petition for further inquiry on Friday to see the progress made in this regard following the assurance by the Commissioner of Elections, legal sources said.

On an earlier date of inquiry the Chief Justice Sarath Silva directed the Commissioner of Elections to express his opinion regarding the request of publishing Upcountry voters' registries in Tamil language according to official language act, legal sources said.

CWUF in its FR petition had sought the intervention of the Supreme Court to order the Commissioner of Elections to publish voters' registries in Upcountry in Tamil language also. The petition states that majority of the residents in the plantation sector in the Upcountry are Tamils and they are undergoing difficulties in going through voters' registries exhibited in public offices are only in Sinhala. Hence the fundamental rights of Tamil people are violated, legal sources said.

The petition had cited the Commissioner of Elections and other relevant officers as respondents.