In an attempt to end the Sri Lankan Civil War, the Indo-Lanka Accord was signed on 29 July 1987.

[citation needed] The Indo-Lanka Accord also required the merger of the Eastern and Northern provinces into one administrative unit.

The Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front, an Indian-backed paramilitary group, won control of the North Eastern provincial council.

[citation needed] On 1 March 1990, just as the Indian Peace Keeping Force were preparing to withdraw from Sri Lanka, Annamalai Varadaraja Perumal, Chief Minister of the North Eastern Province, moved a motion in the North Eastern Provincial Council declaring an independent Tamil Eelam.

[8] President Premadasa reacted to Permual's UDI by dissolving the provincial council and imposing direct rule on the province.

A special election was held in Southern Province in 1994 after some UNP provincial councillors defected to the opposition.

It was also able to form a majority administration in the other five provinces with the support of smaller parties such as the Ceylon Workers' Congress (CWC) .

The UNP regained control of the Central Provincial Council in 2002 after the CWC councillors crossed over to the opposition.

[6] On 16 October 2006 the Supreme Court ruled that the proclamations issued by President Jayewardene were null and void and had no legal effect.

[12] In March 2013 the United Nations Human Rights Council passed a resolution which, amongst other things, welcomed the decision to hold the election in September 2013.