FINANCE MINISTER AND FIVE OTHERS TEMPORALLY RELEASED

The Colombo Fort Magistrate yesterday ordered to temporally release Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake, Deputy Minister Ajith P. Perera, United National Party (UNP) MPs R. Yograjan, Nalin Bandara and two others from a case filed against them, and advised them to appear before Court upon receiving notices.

They were charged with allegedly trespassing into a Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) building in Colombo 2 and attacking Nidahas Sevaka Sangamaya (NSS) members after pointing firearms to scare them during their fact-finding mission at the SLPA premises at No. 15, Morgan Street in Colombo 2 on October 21 last year. Lawyers appearing for the four ruling party politicians and two Jathika Sevaka Sangamaya (JSS) activists requested that their clients be released from the case, as the complaint made against them was false and baseless.

Defence Counsel Niroshan Perera and Ajith Pathirana submitted to Court that a trade union affiliated to the SLFP had misused the SLPA premises, a public property claiming it had been given to the NSS to carry out its political activities.

They argued that by the time the incident happened on October 21, the NSS had not properly received permission to use the premises but it received the authorisation of the SLPA following a board meeting decision headed by former SLPA chairman on October 23 two days after the alleged incident took place.

Meanwhile, the Crimes OIC attached to the Slave Island police Nalaka Gunasekara told Court the persons who made complaints to police that they were assaulted by these suspects were yet to undergo medical examinations before a Judicial Medical Officer. The Magistrate Thilina Gamage observed

that there was no need to proceed with the case if there was no evidence to prove the charges and asked police whether there was a possibility of withdrawing charges against the suspects.

However, police told Court that they have already sought the Attorney General’s advice over the matter and they were yet to receive his advice. Further magisterial inquiry into the matter was fixed for June 1 and the suspects were advised to appear before Court only if they receive notices to do so.

In this case, police reported to Court they had received a complaint from the NSS Senior Vice President Sumith Rohana that some United National Party (UNP) MPs and JSS members had forcibly entered the SLPA premises and attacked NSS members.The complainant said the building belonged to the NSS and was used to carry out the political activities of the SLFP. He said the UNP MPss and the JSS members threatened them with firearms and videoed the premises without their permission.