Hakeem admits to verbal lashing by MR

1 March 2014 04:31 pm

Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) leader Rauff Hakeem today admitted he received a verbal lashing from President Mahinda Rajapaksa at a cabinet meeting but dismissed it as no more than an "expression of ideas".

Hakeem, the Minister of Justice, noted there was speculation in the media that an irate Rajapakasa had spoken ill of him and his party at the cabinet meeting yesterday.

But he told a gathering in Panadura said, "This was a free expression of ideas. True that the President became somewhat aggressive in his expression. This type of thing can happen in a democracy.

"The President himself promotes free ideas at cabinet meetings," he said.

The SLMC is a member of the ruling coalition led by Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Freedom Party.

The independent Daily Mirror today had a report headlined "Irate President takes on SLMC", which said Rajapaksa had asked Hakeem to decide if he and his party want to continue in the coalition.(PTI)