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SJB to commence struggle for Ranjan’s release

03 Jan 2022

BY Buddhika Samaraweera Opposition and Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Leader Sajith Premadasa yesterday (3) said that a massive struggle led by young SJB parliamentarians would be launched to secure the release of former SJB MP Ranjan Ramanayake, who is currently serving a four-year term of rigorous imprisonment for contempt of court. He said this speaking to the media after meeting Ramanayake, who is being held at the Colombo Magazine Prison. Premadasa said that everyone was deeply saddened by Ramanayake’s condition at the moment and that the latter was not a person who should be imprisoned at all. He said that Ramanayake was a man who should be free with the people in the current situation, where the country is in a very challenging and dangerous situation. “This year, we are determined to get him released scientifically and constitutionally. We will launch that democratic campaign from today, and that programme will be led by a group of young SJB MPs. We, the SJB, will work to get him released with all democratic rights,” he added. Premadasa also said that previous requests to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa for Ramanayake’s release had received positive verbal responses, but that the same had not yet materialised. Therefore, he said the highest possible struggle for Ramanayake’s release would be launched democratically. “He has always been a humanitarian who fought to eradicate corruption, fraud, and irregularities in our country. The cause of many problems in this country today is corruption, fraud, and the looting of state property. Ramanayake has always spoken out against them. It is a grave injustice for someone like him to be imprisoned,” he further said. The Supreme Court, on 12 January 2021, sentenced Ramanayake to a four-year term of rigorous imprisonment over contempt of court. The case was filed by Ven. Magalkande Sudaththa Thera and Air Force officer (retired) R. Sunil Perera in 2017, following some remarks made by Ramanayake allegedly insulting the reputation of the Judiciary when commenting to the media on 21 August 2017. The case was heard before a three-judge bench composed of Justices Sisira de Abrew, Vijith Kumara Malalgoda PC, and Preethi Padman Surasena. In July 2021, several local film actors and actresses and artistes, including Dilhani Ekanayake, Anusha Damayanthi, and Arjun Kamalanath, made a joint request from President Rajapaksa to grant a presidential pardon to fellow film actor Ramanayake. Furthermore, Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) MP and actress Geetha Kumarasinghe also, on 23 April 2021, made an appeal for a presidential pardon for Ramanayake. Speaking in Parliament, she said: “I am not making this appeal for any political reasons. I make this appeal to grant a presidential pardon to my one-time colleague Ramanayake for the sake of the cinema industry.” Meanwhile, former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has also requested the President to grant a presidential pardon to Ramanayake. In a recent letter to Rajapaksa, Kumaratunga said that it was unfortunate that Ramanayake has been condemned to four years of imprisonment due to contempt of court in a backdrop where many other convicts of serious offences have been set free by the current Government.


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