Thirty petitions on the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution have been filed in the Supreme Court, with the window for filing due to expire on Monday, NewsFirst reported on Sunday night.
Twenty-seven of the petitions oppose the proposed amendment and three support it. The bill was gazetted a fortnight ago and subsequently presented to Parliament.
What happens next
Once the filing period closes, the Chief Justice is expected to appoint a Supreme Court bench to consider whether the amendment has been presented in accordance with the Constitution, and to determine the procedure by which Parliament may pass it — in particular whether a two-thirds majority alone suffices or whether a referendum is also required.
Under the Constitution, where the constitutionality of a proposed amendment is challenged by one or more petitions, the Court has three weeks to consider the matter. The bench then transmits its determination to the Speaker of Parliament.
That three-week clock is the constraint on the government’s own timetable. Cabinet spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa has placed the parliamentary debate at end-September or early October, and Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara said on Sunday that the government would not back down on the amendment.
How the 30 divide
The tally reflects a pattern visible over the past fortnight. The Bar Association of Sri Lanka has been the most prominent petitioner against the amendment and has since converted its request for a full bench into a formal motion. Professional bodies have continued to line up on that side, with the Government Medical Officers’ Association and the Dental Surgeons’ Association declaring their opposition on Sunday.
The supporting side has grown more slowly and largely through intervenient petitions, including two filed in late August and an NPP parliamentarian’s application asking the Court to dismiss the BASL petition.
The amendment’s central provision would raise the retirement age of Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and District Court judges by two years. The government has told the UN that the change is not aimed at specific judges.
NewsFirst did not name the petitioners in the latest filings or give the exact closing time on Monday. No other verified newsroom had published the 30-petition tally at the time of writing.
