COLOMBO: Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), a hardline Sinhalese-Buddhist organisation, said on Thursday that Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena’s decision to allow the singing of Sri Lanka’s national anthem in Tamil was unconstitutional.
Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara, chief of the Sena, told journalists that the Lankan constitution had sanctioned only one version and that was in Sinhalese.
“Any other version will be unconstitutional,” he said.
“If any change has to be brought about, there has to be a referendum.”
In 2010, Sinhalese groups in Sri Lanka had campaigned against the practice of singing the anthem in Tamil.
Published in Dawn, March 20th, 2015
On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play
Dear visitor, the comments section is undergoing an overhaul and will return soon.