According to internal government sources, the 21st Amendment to the Constitution, due to be presented to the Cabinet today (23rd), is not a practical measure to curtail the powers of the President but contains controversial clauses restricting the opportunity for dual citizens to hold parliamentary seats.
The provisions relating to severing the President’s powers, in particular, must be passed by a 2/3 majority in Parliament. However, the Gota-Ranil government is currently manoeuvring the members to prevent them from getting that 2/3 vote. These internal government sources confirm that this is solely under the direction of Basil Rajapaksa and that dual citizens will not be deprived of parliamentary privileges.
