The Sri Lankan government said Thursday that no presidential election will be held this year despite the ruling party naming its presidential runner.

Maithripala Sirisena, minister of Irrigation and a senior member of the ruling party told reporters here that "election will be held only next year".

The ruling Sri Lanka Freedom Party named the incumbent Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse as its presidential candidate on Wednesday and the nomination was formally announced here Thursday.

However, the main opposition United National Party (UNP) legislator Rajitha Senaratne said Rajapakse's naming definitely indicated that the government would be compelled to hold the election to elect the country's next president by the end of this year.

The two parties are involved in a political debate over the date for the presidential election.

The UNP says it must be held by the end of this year while the ruling party maintains that it should not be held earlier than 2006.

The UNP had named its leader Ranil Wickremesinghe as its presidential candidate early this year and held a 10-day-long protest march to highlight the need to hold the presidential election this year.

The date for the next presidential election is not yet known as the country's Elections Commissioner is yet to announce his decision over the long debate on the date.

Source: Xinhua