The Court of Appeal today (05) ordered the Secretary-General of Parliament not to take any action regarding Ranjan Ramanayake's parliamentary seat until the 12th of this month.

Ranjan Ramanayake, who was sentenced to four years imprisonment with contempt of court for contempt of court, filed the order while considering a writ petition filed in the Court of Appeal today. The writ petition was taken up before a bench of Justices Arjuna Obeysekera and Sobhitha Rajakaruna. The Secretary-General of Parliament and the Attorney General have been named as respondents in the petition filed by Ranjan Ramanayake through his lawyers.

Ramanayake, in his petition, has stated that he has received information that the Secretary-General of Parliament is seeking to unseat him Parliament in the wake of the sentence given to him by the Supreme Court for contempt of court.

In his writ petition, Ranjan Ramanayake had said that it would be illegal to do so and that an interim order should be issued preventing the Secretary-General of Parliament from unseating him from Parliament.