Election laws will be upheld strictly in the post-election period, Police Media Spokesperson SP Ruwan Gunasekara said.
According to Gunasekara all rallies, processions and political gatherings continue to be banned today. “We have directed all police stations to record and report any such activities,” he said adding that suspects caught in connection to these incidents will be identified and reported to courts.
Police arrested 39 people including eight candidates for violation of election laws during the polling period of the local government elections held yesterday.
According to the Police, many of those nabbed were arrested for taking photographs of the ballot paper at the polling station. These incidents were reported from the Moragalla, Pujapitiya, Aralaganwila, Swarnajayanthipura, Aswedduma and Kuliyapitiya. Two of the seven reported incidents were from the Aswedduma area in Kurunegala.
Returning officers of the polling centres where these incidents occurred had handed over the suspects and their mobile phones to the Police.
The other suspects were arrested for various offences ranging from distribution of propaganda material, transporting voters to polling stations, putting up posters and strewing party logos on the roads leading to polling stations. “All arrested suspects will be produced before the respective magistrates courts,” Police Spokesperson SP Ruwan Gunasekara said, adding that orders have been dispatched to all officers on duty to arrest all election law violators irrespective of who they were. Election laws will be upheld strictly in the post election period as well, SP Gunasekara said.