By KUNA,
New Delhi : Elections in two of Sri Lanka’s nine provincial councils were held Saturday amid tight security.
The polls are being held in the Sabaragamuwa and North-Central provinces, news agency Indo Asian News Service reported. The electoral process was smooth till noon with voter turnout of 35 percent. Results are expected early Sunday, the news agency said.
Over two million voters are eligible to elect 77 members for the two councils. More than 20,000 police personnel have been deployed for the polling and the counting centres.
Sri Lanka’s ruling coalition United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) of President Mahinda Rajapaksa is locked in a close contest with the United National Party of former prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
Hard line Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, also in the fray, is strong in the North-Central province. These two councils were ruled by UPFA when a mid-term poll was declared last month.