The Court of Appeal has ordered that further consideration of the intervening petitions filed in connection with former State Intelligence Service (SIS) Director Major General (Retired) Suresh Sallay’s challenge to his detention under the Prevention of Terrorism Act be taken up on August 6.
The matter was heard on Tuesday before a bench comprising Court of Appeal President Justice Rohantha Abeysuriya and Justice Priyantha Fernando.
Attorney General objects
Deputy Solicitor General Suharshi Herath, appearing for the respondents — who include Criminal Investigation Department Director Shani Abeysekara — told court that the Attorney General objected to the intervening petitions being considered at all, arguing that previous judicial decisions indicated they could not be permitted.
Counsel for Sallay took the opposite position. President’s Counsel Sanjeewa Jayawardena said he had no objection to the intervening parties being allowed to make submissions, and according to Ada Derana went further, saying he welcomed the petition filed by the Archbishop of Colombo, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, opposing his own client’s application.
Justice Abeysuriya indicated the court would hear all petitions filed both in support of and against Sallay’s application, and asked counsel to limit their submissions to ten minutes each.
Arguments from the intervening parties
President’s Counsel Manohara de Silva, appearing for a group that includes Dr. Gunadasa Amarasekara, cited a Supreme Court judgment in SC Writ Application No. 349/22 for the position that any person is entitled to intervene and make submissions where executive power has been exercised arbitrarily. He argued that Sallay’s arrest was arbitrary and contrary to law, that no evidence linking him to the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks had been placed before court, and questioned whether a fair investigation could be conducted in the present circumstances.
President’s Counsel Udaya Gamage, for the Patriotic People’s Movement, argued that the PTA should not be used to harass individuals, citing a recent Supreme Court ruling on the arrest of activist Wasantha Mudalige which held the law could not be abused.
The two newsrooms differed on the number of interventions. NewsFirst reported that twelve intervening petitions were taken up, while Ada Derana reported that eight parties — including Ven. Bengamuwe Nalaka Thero — had filed in support of Sallay’s application, with Cardinal Ranjith filing against it. Dr. Amarasekara’s organisation was rendered as the Desha Hithaishi National Movement by NewsFirst and as the National Patriotic Movement by Ada Derana.
Sallay was detained under the PTA over investigations into the Easter Sunday bombings of 21 April 2019. Cardinal Ranjith and a senior Buddhist monk first moved to intervene in July, and the main writ petition itself is due to be called again on August 25.
