There were allegations that Ranil Wickremesinghe was taking advantage of the internal disputes within the SLFP between the Mahinda Rajapaksa faction and the Maithripala Sirisena faction and conspiring to break up the SLFP.

Further, it has come to light that the fractioned SLFP members were planning to establish a new political party under the leadership of Basil Rajapaks, Wimal Weerawansa, Udaya Gammanpila and several others and it is probably done with the consent of Ranil Wickremesinghe.

It is further alleged that every time an attempt is made to hold discussions with the Mahinda faction in order to unite the SLFP, the Prime Minister very subtly devices a plan to arrest a member of the Rajapaksa clan in order to sabotage the process.

However Wickremesinghe has requested Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge to reassure President Sirisena that he will not make any attempt to split up the SLFP and he would do everything in his power to stabilize and strengthen the Unity government for the next five years.

On September 06, after the UNP working committee meeting to finalise the UNP’s 60th Anniversary arrangements, a function for party leaders and other VIP’s was held at the Water’s Edge in Battaramulla. Chandrika Bandaranaike was also a guest at this function and it is said that the Prime Minister had made this request during informal discussions.

He had further said that his prime intention was to honour the pledge given to the people to uplift the country’s political and economic development and added that if the SLFP splits up and it weakens the presidency, it will only hamper his intentions and nothing will be gained by dividing the SLFP.

The invitation extended to the President by the Prime Minister to attend the UNP convention as the Chief Guest was accepted by him, as a token of gratitude for the support extended during the Presidential election, a spokesman for the president’s office said.

In spite of the internal disputes within the SLFP, political analysts predict that based on the answers given by the president in response to all allegations levelled against him, the internal crisis within the SLFP would soon be resolved.

Subsequent to the assurance given by the President to all SLFPers that his intention was to establish an SLFP government at the next General Election, even the objections raised over the SLFP members joining the consensus government by the Mahinda faction, has subsided.