Political activists stage a demonstration denouncing attempts by former president Mahinda Rajapakse to contest upcoming parliamentary elections in Colombo yesterday. Rajapakse announced he wanted to run for parliament, six months after his defeat by his former ally and health minister Maithripala Sirisena at the January presidential election.

IANS
Colombo
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has said he would not give nomination to his predecessor Mahinda Rajapakse to contest the parliamentary elections from the main opposition United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA).
The decision may lead to a major split in the opposition with a group of parliamentarians likely to join Rajapakse in a separate party to contest the polls, Xinhua reported.
Rajapakse on Wednesday said he would make a comeback to politics by contesting the August 17 parliamentary elections and look to form a new
government.
He however did not say under which political party he would look to contest the parliamentary polls and if he is still seeking the post of prime minister.
One of the main demands put forward by Rajapakse when he met Sirisena in a meeting recently was that he be nominated as the UPFA’s prime ministerial candidate.
Sirisena, in a meeting with UPFA party leaders on Thursday evening, said as the chairman of the UPFA, he would not give nomination for Rajapakse to contest the polls from his party, sources who attended the
meeting said.
Following this decision, Rajapakse and his supporters were likely to contest the polls from a separate party, the sources said.
Feted by many Sri Lankans for ending a 26 year civil war with a crushing victory over the Tamil Tiger rebels, Rajapakse was slammed by rights groups for the brutal methods used. U.N. reports alleged human rights violations and sought to establish an independent mechanism to investigate war crimes during the final phase of a conflict that ended in May 2009.
Stung by Western criticism over conduct of the war, Rajapakse had welcomed stronger ties with China, but the new government has sought a more balanced foreign policy.
During Rajapakse’s time in office the media was heavily censored, and attacks on religious minorities and persecution of political rivals and journalists were commonplace.