Arrest warrants on bond scam suspects including Ravi issued lawfully, court told
Posted on June 19th, 2020
Courtesy Adaderana
Attorney General, today (19), told the court that issuance of arrest warrants by the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court on former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake and several other bond scam suspects has followed a lawful procedure.
The writ applications filed by Ravi Karunanayake, PTL owner Arjuna Aloysius, Central Bank employees Sangarapillai Pathumanapan and Indika Saman Kumara, seeking a court order to revoke the arrest warrants issued against them, were taken up for consideration today (19).
A three-judge bench consisting of Appeals Court President Justice A.H.M.D. Nawaz, Shiran Gunaratne and Sobhitha Karunaratne sat for the petition hearing.
The writ applications have been fixed for support on June 26.
The petitioners had alleged that the Colombo Fort Magistrate issuing arrest warrants on them based on the B report submitted to the bench by the police is against the law and had sought the Appeals Court for a revocation of warrants.
On 06 March, the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court issued warrants for the arrest of Karunanayake and 9 others over the Central Bank bond auctions of March 2016.
The Attorney General subsequently directed the Acting IGP to obtain arrest warrants against several suspects in the Central Bank bond scam case including the former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake, former Governor of the Central Bank Arjuna Mahendran, Perpetual Treasuries Limited (PTL) owner Arjun Aloysius, CEO Kasun Palisena, former Director of the Public Debt Department of the Central Bank T.H.B. Sarathchandra and several others on charges of conspiracy, criminal misappropriation, cheating, and market manipulation in respect of the bond auctions of March 2016.
The Colombo Fort Magistrate Ranga Dissanayake accordingly issued arrest warrants on ten suspects in the case, except on the tenth suspect, Buddhika Sarathchandra.
June 19th, 2020 at 6:17 pm
After over 5 years the nation is sick and tired of legalese excuses for not apprehending and hearing cases on charges levelled against the above-mentioned persons. Every day that passes increases our distrust of the existing law enforcement authorities.
It did not take many days to accuse Ven Gnanasara Thero of contempt of courts and for sending this well meaning Buddhist Priest to prison. Major Ajith Prasanna is still behind bars on similar in our eyes concocted charges. A couple of days ago a middle-aged woman was condemned to death for taking a few grammes of narcotics to a prison. We have no grouse with such justice. All that we want is similar justice applied to other well-heeled and powerful culprits too.
However the Central Bank Bond thieves and conspirators, co-conspirators and terrorists are still on the loose. The nation is waiting with bated breath to see justice being brought to us – at lease within our lifetimes!