SJB and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa yesterday (18) said the National Commission on Women has been placed under the Women's Affairs Ministry, and that this move threatens its independence.

Speaking in Parliament, he alleged the Government had acted wrongly by gazetting the Women’s Commission under the said Ministry. “That is wrong. The independence is lost there. This is a serious mistake. All other commissions are considered independent, but the Women’s Commission has been placed under a Ministry. That is an insult to the women in this country who make up 52 per cent of the total population,” he said.

Responding to the allegation, the Women's Affairs Minister Saroja Savithri Paulraj said the Women’s Commission is not a Commission gazetted under the Ministry. She explained the Women Empowerment Act, No. 37 of 2024 provides for the establishment of the Women’s Commission. "Prior to the said Act coming into force, a Women’s Committee functioned under the Ministry. When the Act came into effect, that Committee was abolished and the Commission was established in its place. It functions as an independent body. We stand for its independence, and we accept its independence,” she said.

Premadasa rejected Paulraj’s claim, saying that he would describe her statement as inaccurate rather than a lie. He said that Paulraj had claimed the Commission had not been gazetted under the Ministry. “This is the gazette. It has been gazetted,” he said, producing a copy of the same in the Parliament.

A schedule of an Extraordinary Gazette notification dated 25 November 2024, seen by The Daily Morning, mentioning the institutions coming under the said Ministry, in the section titled “Departments, Statutory Bodies and Government Corporations” lists the National Commission on Women among several institutions. The other institutions listed in it include the Women’s Bureau, the Probation and Child Protection Services Department, the National Child Protection Authority, the National Secretariat on Early Childhood Development, and the National Trust Fund for the Protection of Children (Daruwan Surakimu).

Further, Premadasa said that when budgetary allocations are made, commissions are usually provided funds separately and do not come under any Ministry. He stressed that the Women’s Commission is an independent body and should be treated in the same manner. He pointed out the Public Service Commission, the Judicial Service Commission, the National Police Commission, the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, the Finance Commission, the Human Rights Commission and the National Election Commission have all been granted financial provisions under special expenditure units. That privilege, he said, should also be extended to the Women's Commission.

Paulraj further said that financial allocations could not be made to the Women's Commission at the time the Budget for this year (2026) was prepared, as the Commission had not been established by then.

Premadasa also questioned the Government’s failure to allocate funds when presenting the said Budget. Even if the Commission had not been established at that time, he said, the Government could have allocated funds through a supplementary estimate.

At this point, the Leader of the House, Minister Bimal Rathnayake interrupted Premadasa, saying the Opposition Leader was entitled only to seek a brief clarification from the Minister under the relevant Standing Orders, and should not make extended speeches.

Paulraj also addressed the resignation of the maiden Chairperson of the Women's Commission, Dr. Ramani Jayasundere. She said the Chairperson had informed the Ministry through an electronic mail about her resignation, but added there was no need for her (Dr. Jayasundere) to inform her (Paulraj). “She is the Chairperson of an independent Commission. She has no need to communicate it to me,” she said. She added the resignation had been handed over to the President, and the Ministry is therefore not aware of the reasons for the resignation.