Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe today admitted that the expenditure heads of the Ministry of Megapolis and Western Development and the Ministry of Local Government and Provincial Councils were defeated as ruling party MPs were not in the House during the time of the vote. 

Speaking in Parliament today, the Prime Minister added that the absence of MPs during an important vote was a mistake on the government's part. 

He, however, stated that the government would take appropriate steps to present the defeated expenditure heads to Parliament again, with amendments. 

"We will work according to the Parliamentary traditions," the Prime Minister explained. 

However, speaking to the media earlier today, UPFA MP Bandula Gunawardena said the government should present supplementary estimates to Parliament for the expenses of the ministries whose expenditure heads have been defeated. 

Only 23 MPs voted in favour of the two Expenditure Heads while 38 MPs voted against. 

Although votes are hardly taken during the committee stage, the UPFA asked for a vote on the Expenditure Heads of the two ministries having realized that the government had only a handful of MPs in the House last evening. 

The defeat, however, does not derail the parliamentary process with regard to the budget. Committee stage debates are expected to take place continuously until the third reading vote on the budget on April 05.