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K Venkataramanan in Colombo
President Chandrika Kumaratunga's minority regime may survive for one more year after parliamentarians of the ruling People's Alliance approved a pact on Sunday night with the leftist Janatha Vimukti Peramuna, but will have only a downsized Cabinet, the state-run media said on Monday.
Conceding the JVP's key demands, the government will convene the prorogued Parliament on September 6, a day ahead of schedule, and cancel the October 18 referendum on whether the nation needs a new Constitution.
The government parliamentary group met on Sunday night to make the crucial decision to seal the pact just before the midnight deadline set by the JVP in exchange for the support of its 10 MPs for a year, Daily News said.
The lawmakers also called for the resignation of all 44 Ministers to enable President Chandrika Kumaratunga to name a new Cabinet of not more than 20 Ministers, a key demand of the JVP.
An official announcement on the details of the agreement with the JVP and the terms on which it will allow the 'probationary government' to continue for a year is expected in the course of the day.
The accord will help the PA government to continue in office, despite being reduced to a minority over two months ago, when a key Muslim ally walked out of it, triggering a prolonged political crisis.
The PA, which has 109 members in the 225-member house, will have a clear majority if the JVP backs it.
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