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RW seeks to clear himself from victimisation report

02 Aug 2021

  • Files writ to quash findings and recommendations related to him
  • Claims materials, findings, recommendations biased
BY Pamodi Waravita United National Party (UNP) Leader and parliamentarian Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday (2) filed a writ application before the Court of Appeal, requesting the court to issue an order to quash the findings and recommendations related to him in a report on political victimisation. The report, compiled by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) to Investigate Incidents of Political Victimisation that had taken place between 8 January 2015 and 16 November 2019, has reportedly alleged that Wickremesinghe, among others, has violated the Constitution and misused public property. He has named the Commission Members, including its Secretary and the President’s Secretary, as the respondents. In his petition, Wickremesinghe has noted that despite a request by him to be provided with a certified copy of the PCoI report, he has not received one and that the report has not been published either. The petition has further stated that the materials collected by, and the findings and recommendations made by, the PCoI in relation to Wickremesinghe are “vitiated by bias” and are a “nullity in law”. Thus, Wickremesinghe has requested that the court examine the PCoI report and issue an order to “quash” the findings and recommendations related to Wickremesinghe that are contained in it. Apart from Wickremesinghe, the PCoI has reportedly named former Ministers Mangala Samaraweera, Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka (incumbent MP), Patali Champika Ranawaka (incumbent MP), Rauff Hakeem (incumbent MP), and Malik Samarawickrama, former Opposition Leader and incumbent MP R. Sampanthan, MP M.A. Sumanthiran PC, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Leader and MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake, J.C. Weliamuna PC, former MP Dr. Jayampathi Wickramaratne PC, former Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Director Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Shani Abeysekara, and former Prime Minister’s Secretary Saman Ekanayake for allegedly violating the Constitution and misusing public property. JVP Leader Dissanayake and Field Marshal Fonseka also filed writ applications with the Court of Appeal regarding the report in March of this year. A parliamentary resolution submitted by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on 9 April seeks to implement the decisions and recommendations made by the aforementioned PCoI about the withdrawal of ongoing criminal cases. These include cases pertaining to the investigations into the murder of editor Lasantha Wickrematunge, the alleged abduction and disappearance of 11 Tamil youths by the Navy, the Welikada Prison massacre of 2012, and alleged money laundering by one of Rajapaksa’s sons, Yoshitha Rajapaksa. The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) has previously stated that this is the “latest attempt by the Executive to undermine the work of the Judiciary and that this must therefore be robustly countered to ensure that each arm of the Government is able to work independently”. The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) have also expressed similar concerns about the resolution. The PCoI, led by retired Supreme Court Judge Justice Upali Abeyratne and comprising retired Court of Appeal Judge Justice Daya Chandrasiri Jayathilaka and retired Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chandra Fernando among its membership, was appointed early last year. It was tasked with inquiring into incidents of alleged political victimisation that took place in the wake of investigations conducted by the Commission to Investigate into Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, the Financial Crimes Investigation Division, the CID, and the Special Investigations Unit of the Police from 8 January 2015 to 16 November 2019. Later, a Special PCoI was appointed to study the findings of the aforementioned report.

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