Bharatha Lakshman – ‘Vote of Condolence’ today in Parliament

As a matter of practice, Friday’s in Parliament on weeks they are in session is usually reserved for votes of condolence for Parliamentarians who have passed on! Today is no exception, and Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra will be remembered today. No doubt members of his family will come to the visitors’ gallery to hear parliamentarians ‘praise’ the individual no matter what they may have said about him in the past. There is also an adjournment debate scheduled.

Considering, he, an ex-parliamentarian, who died as a result of a shootout in broad daylight, akin to the ‘Gunfight in the OK Corral’, with a current Parliamentarian Duminda Silva, who is still undergoing treatment in Singapore. It will be interesting to see what MPs have to say, especially as many have been accused of befriending Duminda and his actions, prior to the polling day incident in Kolonnawa area which led to the killing.

As a matter of practice we do not speak ill of the dead, and so his contribution to the trade union movement which he represented will be most probably be stated to remind the audience of his contribution to it.

Under the circumstances where the other party is still to be questioned over the incident so many months later, where he can rightly after so many surgeries claim he cannot even recall the incident, it will be an interesting outcome. Considering Duminda has been granted a leave of absence from the Parliament whilst he is undergoing treatment, even those ostensibly from his camp will mostly likely be praising Bharatha Lakshman much to the disgust of his family who may be appalled by the crocodile tears shed in this instance.

Votes of condolence days are usually the least well attended by MPs owing to other more important duties that they have to attend to, however I suspect that today, there will be a better than normal presence if only to see who sheds the crocodile tears, and who says what so that we may be able to garner which ones are best at making an utter fool of themselves in public or are the jokers which ever you way you look at the house.

No doubt when it is reported in the press, few will read the proceedings in parliament but they are a matter of record in Hansard as to who said what for posterity in this episode of a sorry event.