Suspects further remanded till February 20

The six suspects who had been on remand for possessing a stock of 192 grams of heroin and ten pistols of a foreign make were further remanded by Panadura Additional Magistrate Chandima Kalansuriya. The suspects Madurapperumage Dhananjaya Dharmakumara, Madurapetumage Kanchana Priyadarshani and Bethmage Upeksha Jayamini had been arrested by Peliyagoda Division Crime Investigation Bureau during a raid in Bandaragama on January 30, 2020.

OIC Crime Investigation Bureau CI Jayantha Dahanaka submitted the report and produced a letter containing President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s instructions to question the second suspect Kanchana Priyadarshani under detention. He sought a court order to detain her for 90 days and question her on suspicion of possible involvement in ISS terrorist activities.

However, Attorney-at-law Upul Kumara appearing for the suspect objected to the issue of a detention order and submitted

OIC Crime Investigation Bureau CI Jayantha Dahanaka produced a letter containing President ’s instructions to question the second suspect Kanchana Priyadarshani under detention

that the President did not have the power to issue instructions to detain a suspect and that any such order should be made by the Minister of Defence. He informed court that the second suspect had filed a Fundamental Rights Petition in the Supreme Court challenging President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s order.

Police informed court that the suspects had been produced in court under the Prevention of Terrorism Act and Drugs, Opium and Poison Act. The Additional Magistrate who reserved his order till February 20, on detaining the second suspect, postponed the case for that date.