Rathana Thera sworn in as national list MP   of Ape Janabala Party

Ven Athuraliye Rathana Thera signing a document after he was sworn in as a nationlist MP.

By Saman Indrajith

Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera was sworn in as a Member of Parliament before Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena yesterday.

 When the first sittings for the year commenced, swearing-in of the new MP was the first item of the day’s business. He was accompanied to the Speaker’s table by Sergeant-at-Arms Narendra Fernando. After being sworn in, the Thera signed the list of Members of Parliament in the presence of Secretary General Dhammika Dasanayake.

The name of Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera for the National List parliamentary seat allocated to the Ape Janabala Party in the last General Election was announced by the National Election Commission in a Gazette notification. The party received a national list slot as it secured 67,758 votes.

Rathana Thera, who was first elected to Parliament from the Kalutara District in 2004, representing the Jathika Hela Urumaya, was elected to the 7th Parliament from the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) in 2010, representing the Gampaha District.

Rathana Thera represented the United National Party (UNP) in the 8th Parliament as a National List MP in 2015. He was sworn in as an MP yesterday for the fourth time.