{"id":115951,"date":"2021-07-10T16:04:51","date_gmt":"2021-07-10T23:04:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=115951"},"modified":"2021-07-10T16:08:03","modified_gmt":"2021-07-10T23:08:03","slug":"wrong-verdict-rectified-parrt-v","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2021\/07\/10\/wrong-verdict-rectified-parrt-v\/","title":{"rendered":"Wrong verdict rectified – Part V"},"content":{"rendered":"

By : A.A.M.NIZAM – ,MATARA<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Freedom to Duminda\nSilva : Presidential Commission dismisses a seven-judge ruling<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Presidential\nCommission to Investigate incidents of Political Revenge has recommended to\nPresident Gotabaya Rajapaksa that former parliamentarian Duminda Silva, who was\nsentenced to death in connection with the assassination of former\nparliamentarian Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra, should have been acquitted and\nreleased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Commission\ndecided that Duminda Silva should have been acquitted of all charges in the\nindictment filed against him in the Colombo High Court, the report said. The\nthree-member Presidential Commission, chaired by retired Supreme Court Judge\nUpali Abeyratne, was appointed by the President on January 9, 2020. Retired\nCourt of Appeal Judge Daya Chandrasiri Jayatilake and retired IGP Chandra\nFernando the other members of this commission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Commission and its purpose<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This Presidential\nCommission to Investigate incidents of Political Revenge had been assigned to\nlook into the politically revenged personnel and the background to those\nincidents, due to the investigations carried out by the Commission to\nInvestigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, the Financial Crimes Division\nof the Police, the Criminal Investigation Department and the Special\nInvestigation Unit of the Police, from 08th January 2015 to 16th November 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The final report\nwas handed over to the President by the Chairman of the Commission Upali\nAbeyratne at the Presidential Secretariat.The report also includes\nrecommendations regarding a complaint lodged with the Commission by Duminda\nSilva\u2019s father, Arumadura Vincent Primalal Silva. The commission report further\nstates that it is appropriate to grant some relief to the complainant due to\nthe damage caused to Duminda Silva due to his imprisonment, a victim of\npolitical revenge.The Commission further recommended that police officers be\nprosecuted under the Police Disciplinary Rules for lying, perjury and for\ndefamation of the police service.
\n
\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report\nmentions that after examining the evidence presented in this case, the\nCommission concluded unanimously that it has been convinced through strong\nevidence that the respondents MP Ranjan Ramanayake, Padmini Ranawaka and Shani\nAbeysekara have fabricated evidence to convict the plaintiff, Arumadura\nLawrence Romelo Duminda Silva of wrongdoing, to imprison him and sentence him\nto death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who is Bharatha Lakshman?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Bharatha\nLakshman Premachandra, who entered politics with his father\u2019s political\naffiliation, began his political career as a Member of the Kolonnawa Municipal\nCouncil. That was in 1979. In 1983 he became the Leader of the Opposition in\nthe Kolonnawa Municipal Council. He later joined the Sri Lanka People\u2019s Party\nand was the Kolonnawa organizer of the party.Mr. Premachandra, who contested\nthe first Provincial Council election in Sri Lanka in 1988, was elected to the\nProvincial Council from the United Socialist Alliance representing the People\u2019s\nParty. He was again elected as a Member of the Provincial Council in the 1993\nProvincial Council Elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Subsequently,\nBharatha Lakshman Premachandra, who contested the 1994 General Elections, was\nelected to Parliament with 63,421 preferential votes. Mr. Premachandra, who won\nthe general elections in 2000 and 2001, was elected to Parliament for the\nsecond and third time and his parliamentary career ended in 2004. He was later\nappointed by the President as President Mahinda Rajapaksa\u2019s Trade Union\nAdviser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duminda Silva\u2019s rising<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arumadura Lawrence\nRomelo Duminda Silva has been in power in Mr. Bharatha\u2019s jurisdiction since\n2010. He started his political career with the UNP, as a member of the\nProvincial Council. He was elected to the Provincial Council in 2004 and 2009\nwith the highest number of preferential votes from Colombo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He later became a\nmember of the UPFA. He was nominated under UPFA in the 2010 General Elections\nand contested the General Elections from the Colombo District and was elected\nto Parliament as the second candidate on the Colombo District Preferential\nList. He received 146,333 preferential votes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Local Council Election<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the time of\nthis incident, in 2011, Mr. Premachandra was the President\u2019s Trade Union\nAdviser, while Mr. Silva was a Member of Parliament and the UPFA organizer for\nthe Kolonnawa electorate. According to media reports at the time, he was also\nappointed as the Monitoring Member of the Ministry of Defense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kotikawatta-Mulleriyawa\nLocal Council is located in the Kolonnawa Electorate. Its chairman was Prasanna\nSolangarachchi. Mr. Solangarachchi again contested for the Kotikawatta-Mulleriyawa\nLocal Council representing the UPFA in the local government elections held on\nOctober 8, 2011.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Premachandra\nworked for Mr. Solangarachchi\u2019s victory and participated in his election\ncampaign rallies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sumudu Rukshan\nalso contested for the Local Council representing the United People\u2019s Freedom\nAlliance and had a fierce battle with Mr. Solangarachchi. Mr. Silva supported\nSumudu Rukshan. There was a heated battle between the two to get the highest\nnumber of preferential votes on the list to become chairman of the Council.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was a battle\nthat went beyond these two that tested the power of Mr. Silva and Mr.\nPremachandra.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Election law violations since 06.30 am<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As revealed in\nCourt, Kolonnawa UPFA organizer Mr. Silva left home at 6.30 am to go to the\npolls in Tamil Nadu Watta on October 8, 2011, when the local government\nelections were held. When Duminda Silva arrived there, his ministerial security\nsuperintendent Priyantha Dissanayake had gone there with a group of other\nofficers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Silva, who was\nsitting on a chair near the road at the time, was asking voters who they were\ngoing to vote for. He has told those who come to vote for the UNP not to do so.\nMr. Silva and his group had come to the house of a man named Ramesh for lunch\nat around 11.30 am and had been drinking there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chaminda Ravi\nJayanath had also arrived in Tamilnadu Watta at around 12 noon and some of them\nhad left at 2.45 pm as a group. They had left to go to the house of a candidate\nnamed Sumudu Rukshan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On his way to Mr.\nRukshan\u2019s house, Mr. Silva had instructed to stop at Kanda Viharaya. Mr.\nSilva\u2019s defender was in front and the Security Forces (MSD) vehicle was behind\nit and the pajero carrying his personal bodyguards at the tail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anura Thushara de\nMel handed over a T-56 firearm to Chaminda Ravi Jayanath on the orders of Mr.\nSilva after stopping near the Kanda Vihara. It is an illegal firearm. After the\nexchange of firearms, the group left and stopped near Rajasinghe College on\ntheir way to Ambatale. There, Mr. Silva had assaulted a young man who was\nsupporting Mr. Solangarachchi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The group left\nagain and stopped next to Rahula College. Mr. Solangarachchi\u2019s wife had also\ncome to the polling station and Mr. Silva had scolded her. He had asked who she\nhad voted for and she had said that she had voted for her husband Mr.\nSolangarachchi. When Mr. Silva approached her, a woman named \u2018Pinky Akka\u2019 had\ntaken her to a shop called \u2018Anura Kade.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Silva\u2019s\naccomplices were seen displaying T-56 assault rifles near the polling station.\nThe group had stayed there for a while and then proceeded towards Himbutana\nJunction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duminda blocks the road and attacks Bharatha<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Mr. Silva and\nhis group were advancing, Mr. Premachandra\u2019s vehicle had come from the opposite\ndirection near Himbutana Junction. At the same time, his vehicle stopped\nblocking his vehicle. An argument broke out between Mr. Silva and his opponent.\nBeyond the exchange of words, Mr. Silva has hit Mr. Premachandra.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the\nassault, Rajapurage Gamini, Mr. Premachandra\u2019s bodyguard, fired at Mr. Silva\nwith his firearm to save his employer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time,\nPriyantha Janaka Bandara Galaboda alias Galaboda Priyantha, a personal\nbodyguard of Mr. Silva, had shot Mr. Gamini severely injuring him. Mr. Silva\u2019s\ngroup then shot Mr. Premachandra and several others at the scene with an\nillegal T-56 assault rifle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Premachandra,\nDamitha Dharshana Jayatilake, Mohamed Ashim and Manivel Kumaraswamy were killed\nin the shooting. The illegal firearm used in the shooting was later found by the\nCID on a revelation by Chaminda. The department later told the court that it\nwas a firearm used by the LTTE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Silva was also\nshot in the incident and was taken to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore for\ntreatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shani Abeysekara <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was an event\nthat caused a great deal of controversy in the political arena. Therefore, the\ninvestigation was handed over to the CID. The then director of the department\nordered its Special Investigation Unit to investigate the incident. However,\nthe then Director appointed ASP Shani Abeysekara to overlook the Special\nInvestigations Unit as the Assistant Superintendent of Police in charge of that\ninvestigation unit was not present on the relevant day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Special\nInvestigation Unit of the CID conducted the investigation under the supervision\nof Mr. Abeysekera and the OIC in charge of the investigation was Inspector\nMeryl Ranjan Lamahewa. Several suspects were arrested during the investigation.\nHowever, Mr. Silva who played the lead role in the case was not arrested. The\nreason was that he was receiving treatment in Singapore outside Sri Lanka at\nthat time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aggrieved\nparty constantly blamed the CID for not taking action to arrest Mr. Silva and\nnot obtaining a warrant against him during the investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allegations on partiality<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hirunika\nPremachandra, daughter of Mr. Premachandra, alleged that the CID did not arrest\nMr.Silva because they were acting in a partisan manner. MP Ranjan Ramanayake\nalso made similar statements against the CID in those days. Later, Mr.\nRamanayake had stated that he had made such a statement because Inspector Meryl\nRanjan Lamahewa had stated that Mr. Abeysekera was conducting the investigation\nin a partisan manner to Mr. Silva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inspector Merrill\nmet with the deceased family members and stated that Mr. Abeysekera was\ninvestigating Mr. Silva in a biased manner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, there\nwas a need to obtain a statement from Mr. Silva and at that time his lawyer\ninformed that he was in a position where he could not obtain a statement.\nInspector Meryl Ranjan Lamahewa went to Singapore on behalf of the CID to\nobtain a statement from Duminda Silva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His statement\nstated that Mr. Silva had no recollection of the incident. At the same time,\nMr. Premachandra\u2019s party again accused the CID of conducting biased\ninvestigations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Former IGP N.K.\nIllangakoon summoned Mr. Abeysekera for questioning over his failure to arrest\nMr. Silva and the failure to obtain a warrant against him. At the time, Mr.\nAbeysekera had said that a warrant was not required for the arrest as he had\ncommitted a crime under the Criminal Procedure Code. Mr. Abeysekera has\ninformed the IGP that Mr. Silva could be arrested without a warrant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why was Duminda Silva not arrested?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When questioned by\nthe aggrieved parties in court as to why he was not arrested in Singapore, Mr.\nAbeysekera had said that he could not be arrested as he was unconscious. He\nalso said that according to the Constitution, a suspect should be arrested\nafter being charged and that a person who is not properly conscious cannot be\ncharged and therefore, he cannot be arrested until he regains consciousness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Mr.\nSilva, who had recovered, was arrested by the CID after his return to Sri\nLanka. He remained in Nawaloka Hospital during his remand. He was released on\nbail while in Nawaloka Hospital, and returned home the next day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the hearing\nof this case in the Magistrate\u2019s Court, Inspector Meryl Ranjan Lamahewa, who\nwas supposed to represent the CID before the court, was severely reprimanded by\nthe court for not appearing in the case. He was later removed from the relevant\ninvestigation on the ground that he had acted in a manner prejudicial to the\ncase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suspects charged<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the CID\ninvestigation, High Court Judge Shiran Gunaratne referred the investigation\nfile to the Attorney General. The Attorney General who supervised the file,\nfiled indictments against 13 accused including Duminda Silva in the High Court.\nThe defendants were charged with 17 counts, including being a member of an\nillegal mob and murder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Supreme Court\nappointed a three-judge High Court to hear the case, considering a request by\nthe Attorney General to appoint a three-judge panel as this is a special court\ncase. Its presiding judge was High Court Judge Shiran Gunaratne. The other two\njudges were Padmini M. Ranawaka and M.C.B.S. Morais.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

High Court Judge Padmini M. Ranawaka<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the High\nCourt hearing, 118 witnesses were called to testify in the case. After a\nlengthy trial, the High Court decision was announced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Judge Gunaratne,\nthe presiding judge of the bench, passed one judgment and Padmini M. Ranawaka\nannounced another verdict. Mr. Gunaratne ordered that all suspects including\nDuminda Silva in this case be acquitted and released. Ms. Ranawaka ordered that\neight of the 13 suspects be acquitted of all charges and that Mr. Silva and\nfive others were sentenced to death, including life imprisonment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other judge of\nthe tribunal, M.B.S. Morais, agreed with Ms. Ranawaka. Accordingly, Mr. Silva\nand others were sentenced according to the opinion of the majority of the three\njudges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moving Supreme Court against the High Court decision<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Silva and\nseveral other defendants appealed to the Supreme Court against the sentencing.\nThe appeal was heard before a five-judge panel. The five-judge bench comprised\nChief Justice Priyasath Depp, Buwaneka Aluvihare, Priyantha Jayawardena, H.N.J.\nPerera and Vijith Kumara Malalgoda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defendants\ncontinued to argue that the judgment of the High Court Judge and Judge Morais\nin this case was erroneous. Mr. Silva and other defendants also stated that Mr.\nAbeysekara had not conducted the investigation properly. After a lengthy\ndeliberation, the bench ruled in favor of High Court Judges Ms. Ranawaka and\nMr. Morais.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Court ruled\nthat according to the Sections 81A, 82C (1) of the Local Government Elections\nAct No. 53 of 1946, it is not permissible to intimidate voters on a local\ngovernment election day and it is illegal for a group to go to the polls with\nfirearms and such group is an illicit gathering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Liability for the crime<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Supreme Court\nruled that Article 146 of the Penal Code makes it clear that all members of an\nillegal gathering are responsible for an offense committed by any member of\nthat illegal population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Silva has been\nheld responsible for the crime by the Supreme Court and it is mentioned in the\ncourt decision that,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 11th accused\n(Mr. Silva) led the illegal assembly until the moment he (Mr. Silva) was shot\nin the head. This suggests that there may be only a millisecond difference in\ntime between the first shot and the counterattack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there was a\nsignificant difference between the time and space between the parties and the\ncrime, or if the shooting was carried out by a fundamentally different person,\nit could be argued that the 11th accused (Mr. Silva) had left the illegal\nassembly and separated from those acts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But as I have\ndiscussed earlier, the death toll from firearms is a predictable consequence of\ntheir criminal agenda. It is true that the 11th accused (Mr. Silva) was a\nmember of the mob at the beginning of the incident which lasted only 60 seconds\nor so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time,\nthere is no evidence that the 11th accused (Mr. Silva) acted with the intention\nof separating from the meeting at any time before that. The 11th accused (Mr.\nSilva) was injured almost as soon as the deceased was fatally wounded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He (Mr. Silva)\nhas always been involved in and supporting illegal assembly activities.\nTherefore, criminal charges can be filed on the basis of unlawful assembly.\nTherefore, it aligns with the law to convict and punish him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wimal Weerawansha\u2019s argument<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wimal Weerawansa\naccused Judge Ranawaka claiming she had acted impartially in Mr. Silva\u2019s case.\nBut she was the only one judge to hear the case. Judge Morais has also ordered\nMr. Silva to be convicted in the High Court. In addition, when Mr. Silva and\nhis party went to the Supreme Court against the High Court decision, all five\njudges upheld the verdict and sentence against him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is, eight\njudges of the High Court and the Supreme Court have heard Silva\u2019s case, and all\nbut one of the High Court judges have convicted and sentenced him. When even\nJudge Ranawaka, who is accused of being biased, is excluded, six judges\nconvicted Mr. Silva and ordered his sentencing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are orders from 3 courts mistaken?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Commission to\ninquire Political Revenge appointed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has\nunanimously recommended the acquittal and release of Duminda Silva, dismissing\na seven-judge ruling out of 8 judges. It was revealed that there is evidence to\nfile indictments against Duminda in the Magistrate\u2019s Court. Duminda was\nconvicted and sentenced in the High Court. The sentence was upheld again in the\nSupreme Court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Correction of a verdict\ngiven by a regime influencing & politicizing the Judiciary<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Courtesy Hiru News<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Former Colombo\nDistrict Parliamentarian Duminda Silva, who was imprisoned for the murder of\nformer Parliamentarian Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra was released on a\nPresidential pardon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Former Member of\nParliament Duminda Silva played a significant role in uplifting the living\nstandards of low-income earners in the Colombo District.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An exchange of\ngunfire between United People\u2019s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) former parliamentarians\nDuminda Silva and Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra took place at Walpola Junction\nin Kolonnawa on the day of the 2011 local government elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Former Member of\nParliament Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra and three of his bodyguards were\nkilled during this shootout. Former MP Duminda Silva who was shot in the head\non October 8, 2011, at around 3.30 pm, sustained major injuries and was taken\nto the Sri Jayewardenepura General Hospital for treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the\ninitial treatment, he was admitted to a hospital in Singapore for further\nmedical treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duminda Silva who\nwas treated at the Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore for a long time\nreturned to Sri Lanka after recovering and resumed his usual social service to\nthe public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Attorney\nGeneral filed Seventeen (17) charges in the Colombo High Court including\ncriminal charges against 13 individuals including former MP Duminda Silva over\nthe incident that occurred on 08 October 2011 naming them as defendants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trial in this\nregard commenced on 22 May 2015.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forty-two\neyewitnesses (42) were called to court and cross-examined during the lengthy\ntrial which lasted for more than a year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, 126\nvarious reports, including Judicial medical reports, were submitted for this\ntrial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also included\nthe reports of the Government Analysts\u2019 who conducted investigations into the\nincident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After nearly 14\nmonths, the case, which was heard before a three-judge bench concluded on 14\nJuly 2016. The verdict on the case was announced on 08 September 2016.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The verdict was\nannounced as a divided decision referred to as a majority decision of the\nthree-judge bench which was headed by High Court Judge Shiran Gunaratne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Presiding\nJudge acquitted all the accused of all charges, while Judges Padmini N.\nRanawaka and M.C.B.S Moraes announced their verdict convicting former\nparliamentarian Duminda Silva and four others and sentencing them to death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Former MP Duminda\nSilva filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the decision given by the\nColombo High Court.The appeal was heard by a five-judge bench headed by the\nChief Justice of the time, Justice Priyasath Dep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the\nhearing, the Supreme Court five-judge Bench delivered a unanimous decision\naffirming the verdict of the High Court as correct. Accordingly, former MP\nDuminda Silva and the others were imprisoned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, a wider\ndiscussion developed in society as to how former MP Duminda Silva who was the\nfirst injured in the gunfire and had fallen down, could be the killer of former\nMP Bharatha Lakshman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, the\ndiscussion of the verdict of former MP Duminda Silva takes the centre stage\nagain following the leaked audio tapes of secretly recorded phone calls made by\nRanjan Ramanayake who was a parliamentarian at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among the\naudiotapes were conversations between former MP Ranjan Ramanayake and Superintendent\nof Police Shani Abeysekara who conducted investigations. These conversations\nrevealed to the public how the verdict in the trial of former MP Duminda Silva\nwas influenced by MP Ranjan Ramanayake by giving calls to SP Shani Abeysekara.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tapes also\nrevealed the manner in which former MP Ranjan Ramanayake influences and exerts\npressure by calling Judge Padmini N. Ranawaka who was a member of the\nTrial-at-Bar that heard the case against former MP Duminda Silva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus, there was a\nwider debate in the society and in the political arena that the former Member\nof Parliament had been unjustly treated and imprisoned.With these controversial\naudio tapes being broadcasted on mainstream media channels as well as on social\nmedia, a strong voice emerged from civil society activists and even political\nactivists calling for the release of former MP Duminda Silva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even in\nParliament, there was a call for the release of the former Member of Parliament\nwho was unjustly imprisoned. The main argument of all those who raised their\nvoices against the injustice done to Duminda Silva was that this was the result\nof a sinister scheme orchestrated by SP Shani Abeysekara of the Criminal\nInvestigation Department who was investigating the murder of Bharatha Lakshman\nPremachandra.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sufficient new\ninformation and evidence emerged through the leaked audiotapes which were\nsecretly recorded by former MP Ranjan Ramanayake to prove that it was a\ndeliberate and well-planned setup to trap former MP Duminda Silva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Gotabaya\nRajapaksa decided to refer the verdict of the case to the Special Presidential\nCommission appointed to probe alleged incidents of political victimization in\nthe wake of strong voices from social activists alleging that the former\nparliamentarian had been subjected to serious injustice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was revealed\nbefore the Presidential Commission of Inquiry, which considered the verdict and\nthe compiled evidence, that SP Shani Abeysekara had deliberately acted to\nconvict former MP Duminda Silva. It was also revealed at the Presidential\nCommission that former MP Ranjan Ramanayake has also exerted pressure on the\nJudges to influence the verdict of the case against former MP Duminda Silva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following a\nlengthy inquiry, the Presidential Commission of Inquiry concluded that former\nMP Duminda Silva had been treated unfairly. Accordingly, former Parliamentarian\nDuminda Silva was released under a special presidential pardon in accordance\nwith the powers vested in President Gotabaya Rajapaksa by the Constitution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is how former\nParliamentarian Duminda Silva who was imprisoned in the Welikada Prison for\nover five years over an offence that he did not commit was released<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By : A.A.M.NIZAM – ,MATARA Freedom to Duminda Silva : Presidential Commission dismisses a seven-judge ruling The Presidential Commission to Investigate incidents of Political Revenge has recommended to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa that former parliamentarian Duminda Silva, who was sentenced to death in connection with the assassination of former parliamentarian Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra, should have been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115951","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-aamnizam"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115951","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115951"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115951\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115951"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115951"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115951"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}