• Chair claims only Police, in consultation with AG, decide which law applies and file cases

The Election Commission (EC) reiterated that it is the Police — not the EC — that has the legal power to take action over election-related offences, including deciding which law applies and filing cases in court, in consultation with the Attorney General (AG).

Speaking to The Daily Morning, EC Chairperson, R.M.A.L. Rathnayake said that although the EC can notify the Police about election-related law violations, it cannot initiate legal proceedings on its own. “All these matters fall under the relevant legal provisions. The law outlines the offences, and it is the Police who are empowered to decide what action should be taken based on the nature of the offence,” he explained.

He added that even in cases where candidates who contest elections such as the Presidential and Parliamentary General Elections fail to submit their campaign expense reports on time, it is the Police who act under the instructions of the AG, after being notified by the EC.

This clarification comes in the wake of a recent disagreement between the EC and the Ministry of Public Security on deciding over who should handle a complaint regarding a statement made by Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya ahead of the Local Government (LG) Elections held on 6 May.

The Premier was seen in a widely shared video telling supporters: “We will be silent in another four hours. But, you don’t have to be, right? You can still spread the word with a phone call, or a quick word while walking down the road.” The statement was made hours before the start of the official 'silent period' during which all electioneering is prohibited.

Following the video’s circulation, Rathnayake said that the EC wrote to the Acting Inspector General of Police Priyantha Weerasooriya, requesting an investigation and appropriate action, and copied the letter to the Premier's Secretary Pradeep Saputhanthri, and the National People's Power General Secretary, Parliamentarian Dr. Nihal Abeysinghe.

However, the Minister of Public Security Ananda Wijepala subsequently told The Daily Morning that it is the EC that should be dealing with such matters, not the Police. “This is something that the EC should look into. It’s not the Police’s job to decide whether someone violated election laws,” he said.