 The resulting document was tabled in parliament, voted on and adopted on 22 May 1972 by a vote of 119 to 16 against.The 1972 constitution paved the way for Sri Lanka to become a republic, cutting the final ties with its colonial past and British influence, and imparted a firm leftist nature to the state, allowing for the heavily socialist economic policies of the Bandaranaike government.The main opposition party at the time, the United National Party (UNP), voted against the constitution's adoption on the following grounds