SLFP gains ground over Leftists in Catholic areas

by W. T. A. Leslie FERNANDO

When the Delimitation Commission in 1958 re-demarcated the electorates and increased the constituencies to 145, it resulted in a significant effect on the Catholic community. There was some Catholic domination in several electorates and the Catholics formed a powerful bloc in others. This became very distinct in Catholic Negombo.

The former Negombo electorate was mainly divided into two seats, Negombo and Katana and some slots from Negombo were annexed to the new constituencies, Wattala, Divulapitiya and Minuwangoda. As a result Negombo seat constituted 90% of Catholics. In Katana the Catholics and the Buddhists were found almost in equal numbers.

Wattala, Ja-ela, Colombo North, Wennappauwa and Nattandiya became Catholic dominated electorates and in Chilaw too, Catholics wielded considerable power. In Moratuwa and Beruwala, Catholics comprised about 20% of the voters and they formed a powerful force.

Out of all the former electorates it was in Negombo that the Leftists clashed face to face with the Catholic Church. Although the Left movement was strong in Moratuwa, it was led mostly by non-Catholic Christians who comprised about 8% of the electorate. The concentration of Catholics in Negombo after the delimitation adversly affected the Leftists.

Catholic dominated areas

The Leftists were also strong in Catholic dominated areas like Payagala and Maggona in the Kalutara electorate and Wadduwa in the Panadura constituency. Avissawella electorate also had 9% Catholics but most of them supported the Leftists. This was because some of them had an affection to Boralugoda Walauwwa and others came under the influence of Santiago Fernando who was a teacher in the area for a considerable period.

In 1960 March General Election the UNP candidate for Negombo was T. Quentin Fernando, a retired District Judge. As the Leftist parties had no hopes in Negombo after the delimitation none of the Leftists contested the seat but extended their support to the independent socialist Dr. L. C. Dissanayake. The SLFP nominated W. N. Abhayasekera and Bernard Kurera contested the seat from the LPP. There were two independent candidates as well.

This time the former LSSP MP for Negombo Dr. Hector Fernando contested the Katana seat. T. Wijayapala Mendis was the UNP nominee. Jeremius Fernandopulle from the SLFP, Cecil de Silva of the Communist Party and Felix Costa from the LPP were the other candidates for Katana.

The MEP contested 1960 March General Election in alliance with the Dharma Samaja Party of L. H. Meththananda committed to fight against the vicious activities of Catholic Action and bring about a Buddhist resurgence. Accordingly the MEP did not contest electorates with Catholic domination.

In March 1960 election the MEP had taken a policy decision not to contest Leftist leaders. This too made the MEP not to field a candidate against Dr. Hector Fernando. However the MEP put forward powerful candidates for the adjacent seats, Divulapitiya and Minuwangoda.

The support extended by the Catholic Church to the LPP of W. Dahanayake was a significant feature at the 1960 March General Election. In this election Felix Costa was to contest Katana from the SLFP. However at the request of some Catholic priests, he contested from the LPP. In Negombo the LPP candidate got the support of some Catholic leaders and organisations. In Negombo the main contest was between the UNP and the LPP.

At the end the UNP candidate T. Quentin Fernando who polled 11207 votes won Negombo defeating the nearest rival Bernard Kurera of the LPP who got 5786 votes by a majority of 5421 votes. Dr. L. C. Dissanayake came third with 3360 votes. The SLFP candidate polled only 1372 votes and even lost his deposit along with the other two independent candidates.

T. Wijeyapala Mendis of the UNP won Katana at March 1960 with a majority of 2489 votes after polling 9117 votes. To the surprise of many the SLFP candidate Jeremius Fernandopulle came second with 6638 votes. Dr. Hector Fernando the former LSSP MP for Negombo was placed only third with 3106 votes. Cecil de Silva of the CP got 2898 votes and Felix Costa of the LPP was the last with 1327 votes.According to the no-contest pact at the July 1960 July election Jeremius Fernandopulle of the SLFP was entitled to contest the Katana seat. However probably because Dr. Hector Fernando was a recognised political leader the SLFP conceded the Katana seat for the LSSP to be contested by him. Bernard Kurera who contested the Negombo seat from the LPP in March 1960 got the SLFP nomination for Negombo at the July 1960 General Election.

In the July 1960 election, in Negombo T. Quentin Fernando of the UNP polled 14469 votes and confortabley defeated Bernard Kurera of the SLFP who got 7108 votes by a majority of 7361 votes. At Katana in a keenly fought election, T. Wijayapala Mendis of the UNP polled 10846 votes as against Dr. Hector Fernando of the LSSP who polled 10802 votes and retained the seat by a narrow margin of just 44 votes.

In Ja-ela, another Catholic stronghold in March 1960 election Paaris Perera the UNP candidate polled 11960 votes and defeated his nearest rival Oliver Jayasuriya of the SLFP who got 8765 votes by a majority of 3205 votes. The sitting member Stanley de Zoysa of the LPP who got the support of some leading Catholics came third with 4220 votes. At the July election Paaris Perera of the UNP was able to retain the seat by a majority of 2824 votes over Oliver Jayasuriya of the SLFP.

In Wattala another seat with a Catholic majority at the March election Shelton Jayasinghe of the UNP got 9665 votes and won it by a majority of 4415 votes over D. P. Weerakkody of the SLFP who polled 5520 votes. Stanley Mendis of the LSSP got 3198 votes. Vincent Rajapaksa an independent who got the MEP support also polled 2941 votes. At July Shelton Jayasinghe of the UNP defeated Dr. A. D. J. Leo of the SLFP by mere 104 votes and retained the seat.

In the 1956 General Election Mrs. Vivienne Gunawardena of the LSSP could easily win Colombo North because Kolonnawa area too formed a part of it. In the delimination Kolonnawa was taken away from Colombo North and the Catholic percentage increased. Accordingly in March 1960 the UNP candidate V. A. Sugathadasa who polled 9446 votes in the Colombo North defeating Vivienne Gunawardena of the LSSP who polled 8602 votes, by 844 votes. Vincent Siripala of the SLFP also got 3149 votes.

Majority

In July because of the no-contest pact between the SLFP and the LSSP-CP the only candidates were V. A. Sugathadasa of the UNP and Mrs. Vivienne Gunawardena of the LSSP. Yet V. A. Sugathadasa polled 11507 votes as against 11363 by Vivienne Gunawardena and managed to retain the seat by a bare 144 votes.

In Wennappuwa both in March and July elections in 1960 Hugh Fernando of the SLFP could defeat the UNP candidate Festus Perera confortabley. In Nattandiya in March 1960 Sir Albert F. Peiris the UNP candidate polled 10914 votes and C. V. C. Munasinghe of the SLFP polled only 5437 votes, and Albert F. Peiris won by 5477 votes.But the MEP candidate S. Wijesinghe also got 4452 votes. In the July election in a straight contest Albert F. Peiris got 11452 votes and managed to retain Nattandiya against Protus Tissera of the SLFP who got 9743 votes by a majority of 1709 votes.

In March 1960 the SLFP candidate J. C. W. Munasinghe of the SLFP won the Chilaw seat. He polled 9302 votes and defeated his nearest rival S. D. R. Jayaratna who contested the seat as an independent with the MEP support who polled 4527 votes by a majority of 4775 votes. Strangely the UNP candidate J. Patronius Fernando was placed third with 4364 votes. In July 1960 S. D. R. Jayaratna contested the seat from the SLFP.

He polled 10893 votes and defeated J. C. W. Munasinghe who contested Chilaw this time as an independent with the UNP support by 2250 votes.

In July 1960 election the opposition of the Catholic Church towards the Marxists contributed a lot for the defeat of Dr. Hector Fernando in Katana and Mrs. Vivienne Gunawardena in Colombo North.

In both 1960 March and July elections it was found that the SLFP was gaining ground over the Leftists in the Catholic areas.