At a stormy meeting of the United National Party Working Committee last Thursday, party Chief and Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe affirmed that party emissaries had engaged with the Government to explore ways of restoring political stability by assuring conditional support to the People’s Alliance regime.

The UNP leader made the clarification in response to a barrage of questions by a group of critics led by MP Rajitha Senaratne, Sirikotha sources told the “Sunday Observer.” Mr. Senaratne caused an uproar when he referred to last Sunday’s report in this newspaper that twenty UNP parliamentarians favoured conditional support for the PA regime and demanded that those MPs indentify themselves and face disciplinary action for betraying the party.

Responding, Mr. Wickremesinghe had affirmed that the Milinda Moragoda initiative, as reported in the ‘Sunday Observer’ had been undertaken with his knowledge. Sources said that Mr. Wickremesinghe had stated that the party leadership was engaged in exploring ways of co-operating with and supporting the PA Government in power on the basis of certain conditions laid down by the UNP. Prior to Working Committee meeting, Mr. Senaratne had apparently caused a stir by announcing that he would “question” business magnate and Wickremesinghe associate Milinda Moragoda, as well as Lakshman Yapa Abeywardhana and Tissa Attanayake, who were among the 20 UNP parliamentarians led by Mr. Moragoda favouring conditional support for the PA government.

Last Sunday, the ‘Sunday Observer’ reported that the Moragoda group was proposing conditional support to President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge and the PA Government without accepting portfolios. Mr. Moragoda is currently abroad and was not present at Thursday’s meeting.

Mr. Senaratna is understood to have also made accusations of disloyalty against veteran UNPer Rukman Senanayake accusing him of holding “secret” talks with Premier Ratnasiri Wickramanayake.

Mr. Senanayake had then told the meeting that there was a tentative memorandum of understanding with the government which had been fully discussed with leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, deputy leader Karu Jayasuriya, assistant leader Gamini Atukorale, before and during the talks with the Premier. Provoked by the criticism, Mr. Senanayake reportedly told the Working Committee that: “The blood that runs in my body is not inherited from traitors!”.