• Pemasiri Manage to file suit against JVP seeking Rs. 6.8 m+
• Claims his salaries, allowances had been credited to Party fund  
• Says 25 more ex-JVP members similarly positioned 

In the wake of the JVP-led National People’s Power Government securing the passage of the Parliamentary Pensions (Repeal) Bill, former JVP Parliamentarian Pemasiri Manage said he would initiate legal action in the coming days to recover Rs. 6.8 million in salaries that he claims were taken by the Party during his years in political office.

Speaking to The Daily Morning yesterday (18), Manage, who is also the Retired MPs’ Collective’s Secretary, said he had served as a Member of a Pradeshiya Sabha, a Provincial Councillor, and later as an MP from 1997 to 2010. During that entire period, he alleged, all his salaries and allowances were handed over to the Party (JVP). “At no point did I receive any of my earnings as a public representative. When I served in Parliament for five years and 11 months, my monthly salary and allowances amounted to around Rs. 250,000, and it was all credited to the Party’s fund."

He claimed that when he was a Provincial Councillor, the vehicle permit granted to him by the Government was also taken over by the Party. In total, he said, Rs. 6.8 million had been collected from him, excluding the value of the vehicle permit.

Manage alleged that nearly 25 individuals who are no longer with the JVP had similarly handed over their salaries to the Party. With the recent move to abolish MPs’ pensions, he said that former representatives are left without financial security. “Now they have abolished our pensions. There should be a way for us to live. If I had my Rs. 6.8 million, I could have lived on the interest. The Party should now return our money,” he said.

He said that he had already held discussions with lawyers and would first send a letter of demand to the JVP seeking the repayment of his salaries. If the Party fails to respond positively, he said that he intends to file a case. He added that other former JVP members who are currently not with the Party are also expected to take similar legal action.

Attempts to contact the JVP General Secretary, Tilvin Silva proved futile.

The Parliamentary Pensions (Repeal) Bill was passed in the Parliament on Tuesday (17) with 154 votes in favour and two against. The Supreme Court had earlier ruled that the Bill did not contain provisions inconsistent with the Constitution, allowing it to be passed by a simple majority.