PRODUCE DUMINDA in Court: Magistrate

Duminda Silva had been ordered to be produced in court following a report given by a panel of doctors of the Colombo National Hospital.

Colombo Additional Magistrate Ranga Dissanayake directed the Prisons Department to produce Silva before Court.

Examining the suspect’s health condition, a panel of consultants in their report said that there was no obstacle to produce the suspect before court.

Earlier the court directed the Prisons Department to produce suspect Duminda Silva before Colombo National Hospital to examine his health condition under a special panel of doctors as to confirm suspect’s inability of appearing before court due to his illness.

The suspect was not produced before court by the Prisons Officers earlier for the ongoing three bribery cases over the charges of not declaring his assets and liabilities for three years citing health condition.

Counsel Anuja Premaratne appearing for the suspect informed court that his client was urgently produced before a doctor because of his bad health condition, therefore he was not able to bring Mr. Silva before court.

Then, the Magistrate directed the prison authority to produce the suspect in court for the three ongoing cases on April 6. The cases were put off for the same date.

The Bribery Commission had filed three separate cases against Mr. Silva under the Assets and Liabilities Act for not declaring his assets in 2010, 2011 and 2013.

The Bribery Commission had named Parliament Deputy Secretary General P.M. Neil Parakrama and several others as witnesses. Senior Counsel Anuja Premaratne appeared for the defence. Earlier, the Colombo High Court sentenced him to death after being convicted of the murder of Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra.