- Vijitha Herath says Prageeth Ekneligoda probe concluded & only legal proceedings ongoing
Emphasising that the Government is responsible for ensuring justice for victims of crimes, the spouse of journalist/cartoonist Prageeth Ekneligoda, who went missing in 2010, Sandya Ekneligoda said that they as victims can only hope for proper investigations and justice in cases like her husband’s disappearance.
The investigations that the Ministry of Public Security recently directed the Police to expedite do not include several other incidents such as the disappearance of Prageeth Ekneligoda, which have been widely discussed in the past.
When contacted by The Daily Morning, Sandya Ekneligoda said that National People’s Power representatives including its Leader and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake have pledged to serve justice to victims of such incidents. “I don't know if they didn't specifically mention this case as legal proceedings are underway, but, they initially said that necessary action would be taken with regard to this (the disappearance of Prageeth Ekneligoda).” Noting that she has dedicated herself to seeking justice for nearly 15 years, she said that as a victim of a crime, she can only hope for justice to be served by the Government. "I'm the victim of this crime. I've been working to seek justice for all these years, and will continue to do it. However, what we can do is only hope for justice. The responsibility to do it lies with whichever Government that comes to power. I don't know how long I will have to wait." Speaking further, Sandya Ekneligoda said that she could not be much confident of justice being served considering the past experience including what happened during the period from 2015 to 2019. "I was waiting for justice in 2015, but the Government's behaviour changed after some time. Then, former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa messed up everything."
When queried by the media yesterday (15), Cabinet Spokesperson and Public Security Minister Vijitha Herath said that no investigation regarding controversial crimes would be ignored. With regard to the disappearance of Prageeth Ekneligoda, he said that the relevant investigations are already concluded, and that only legal proceedings are to be concluded.
It was announced by the Police last week that the Ministry had directed the Police to expedite investigations into the fatal shooting at the W15 Hotel in Weligama last year (in 2023), the suspicious death of businessman Dinesh Schaffter in 2022, the Easter Sunday terror attacks in 2019, the alleged Central Bank Treasury Bond scams in 2015, the disappearance of activists Lalith Kumar and Kugan Muruganandan in 2011, the disappearance of Vice Chancellor Sivasubramaniam Raveendranath in 2006, and the alleged kidnapping and murder of journalist D.P. Sivaram in 2005.
The disappearance of Ekneligoda, which occurred during Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Presidency from 2005 to 2015, is alleged to have been orchestrated at the behest of political elites at the time. Several parties, including his family members, have accused past Governments of failing to conduct proper investigations and to deliver justice.