In Sri Lanka, a petition was filed on Monday before the Supreme Court, requesting it to order the Elections Commission to hold Provincial Council elections immediately. <br />''<br />''The petition was filed by an organization linked to Opposition Sri Lanka People party (SLPP) led by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa. SLPP had earlier announced that it will approach the court to force government for early elections. <br />''<br />''Six of the nine provinces in the country are without councils now while the term of another two will come to an end in April. The Commission says it cannot hold elections because the new electoral law passed by parliament in August 2017, has not come into force yet. <br />''<br />''President Maithripala Sirsena had introduced a cabinet resolution last month to hold elections as per the old electoral system. However, there is no consensus among political parties on the issue and the matter remains pending. <br />''<br />