The Hon. K. Kader Masthan

Hon. K. Kader Masthan made a brief appeal requesting urgent action on two matters: the release of Qur'an copies damaged by recent floods, and a decision regarding the Ilavankulam road. No specific legislative references or detailed proposals were elaborated upon within the limited speaking time.

## Summary Hon. K. Kader Masthan raised four distinct issues in his speech. First, regarding the Norochcholai (Lakvijaya) coal power station, he called for future procurement tenders to explicitly prioritise quality coal, citing unmet government assurances on pollution control and local employment given when the plant was established. Second, he drew attention to a fatal shooting at a salon in Jinthupitiya, urging the Government to take firm action on public security, noting that constituents had voted for the Government expecting protection from such incidents. Third, he pressed for the expedited release of translated Qur'an copies currently withheld, referencing a prior commitment by the Minister of Foreign Affairs to convene a meeting with Muslim MPs and stakeholders, and urging that this meeting be held promptly. Finally, he urged a swift decision on the opening of the Ilavankulam road, noting it would reduce travel distance to the North by approximately 80 kilometres and that no court order exists to justify its closure, despite a ministerial meeting on the matter being pending.

## Summary Hon. K. Kader Masthan spoke in support of the Container Depot Licensing Bill and the related Amendment Bill, commending the legislation for bringing proper regulation to shipping agents, freight forwarders, and container operators. He referenced an earlier procedural matter raised under Standing Order 27(2) regarding the Mannar–Puttalam Road, noting Minister Bimal Rathnayake's clarification that a court settlement—rather than a binding judgment—allows for further action, and urged cooperative rather than adversarial engagement to establish the road as a principal route. The member also endorsed the President's Independence Day address acknowledging governance failures of the past 76 years and its call to correct past wrongs. He concluded with a specific humanitarian appeal for 253 volunteer teachers in the Northern and Eastern Provinces—60 and 193 respectively—who were excluded from permanent appointments following 2019 Cabinet-approved interviews, requesting a special Cabinet Paper to regularize their positions given their service and limited prospects at approximately 45 years of age.

Hon. K. Kader Masthan raised two concerns in this speech. First, he noted that exam scheduling overlapped with Ramadan, causing hardship for fasting students due to night prayers, and requested that religious affairs divisions be consulted in future to avoid such clashes, suggesting exams should have concluded by the 17th. Second, he highlighted that students in difficult and most difficult schools in conflict-affected areas with over 200 students had not received shoe vouchers or the Rs. 6,000 learning materials allowance in either 2025 or 2026, and called on the relevant authorities to ensure these benefits are extended to such schools.

Hon. K. Kader Masthan acknowledged the Minister's engagement with the North and Mannar region before raising concerns about a road access dispute. He noted that ambiguities in the journal records contributed to a court ruling that relied on the Wildlife Department's assurance against allowing public transport, suggesting the outcome might have differed had respondents 4 and 9–21 filed objections. Characterising the current situation as neither permanent nor satisfactory after years of struggle, he urged the Government to set a date to convene stakeholder consultations and work swiftly toward restoring road access to the public.

## Summary Hon. K. Kader Masthan raised the closure of the Puttalam–Eluvankulam–Mannar Road (B379), a gazetted RDA-maintained national highway, which had resumed public transport use in 2010 before being halted in June 2019 and subsequently closed following a Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) undertaking given during Supreme Court proceedings. The member argued that the DWC exceeded its authority by unilaterally closing an RDA road without a court order banning public transport, and alleged that officials misled the President at a December 2025 District Coordinating Committee meeting by falsely stating no public transport had operated on the road since 1980. He posed four formal questions challenging the legal basis for the DWC's decision, the jurisdictional authority of the DWC over an RDA road, and the adequacy of public consultation given the road's significance to hundreds of thousands of residents. He called on the Government to reopen the road for public use in the absence of any judicial prohibition, tabling supporting documents including a journal entry dated 17 September 2023.