The Central  Committee of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party gave approval a short while ago to hold the Presidential election in January. 

The Central Committee of the ruling party met at Temple Trees last night to have final discussions on the election. 

However, the highlight of the meeting was that no announcement was made on the exact date of the election. The Central  Committee only gave the green light to hold the election two years before the end of President Mahinda Rajapaksa's second term.

Therefore, it is still not clear whether the election will be held on January 02, as widely speculated by media. But, the President now has the approval of his party to issue the proclamation for the election at any moment. The Central Committee of the SLFP also endorsed the candidature of President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the presidential candidate of the party

Speaking to Asian Mirror, a party spokesman said that the election is likely to be announced today by the President. 

Some sources also added that the election night be held during the third week of January - probably on January 18. Proclamation for the election, according to them, has already been drafted, but the exact date of the election is still a puzzle.