Bar Association of Sri Lanka President Rajeev Amarasuriya has rejected a bribery complaint made against him, saying it is one of a series of baseless personal attacks directed at him over recent weeks.

In a social media post, Amarasuriya said the campaign began with an allegation that he had entered into a secret deal with the Leader of the Opposition. He described the claims against him as “false, malicious and, in my view, intended to serve collateral purposes.”

The latest allegation was made by Nagananda Kodithuwakku, who Amarasuriya said was found guilty of professional misconduct and removed from the office of Attorney-at-Law by the Supreme Court on February 29, 2024. Amarasuriya said Kodithuwakku had publicly claimed his Vinivida Foundation had lodged a complaint against him with the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption.

The complaint relates to proceedings before the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court in which Amarasuriya has appeared, together with several President’s Counsel, for the authorised dealer of a motor vehicle manufacturer in Sri Lanka.

Setting out what he called the “true facts,” Amarasuriya said he had appeared only as counsel duly instructed to represent a client. He noted that Kodithuwakku had himself appeared for a respondent and an intervenient petitioner in some of the earlier proceedings, ceasing to do so after his removal from the roll.

Amarasuriya pointed to Section 119 of the Anti-Corruption Act, which makes it an offence to knowingly make false allegations to the commission and provides for criminal sanctions as well as compensation to a person falsely accused.

“When one takes principled positions, speaks independently and is prepared to defend institutions and the rule of law, criticism is inevitable. That is part of public life,” he said, adding that he had never been deterred by personal attacks. Hiru News, carrying the statement in Sinhala, reported that he closed with a proverb: the tallest tree catches the most wind.

The BASL has been at the centre of the dispute over the government’s bill to raise the retirement age of judges. A briefing the association was to give MPs on the proposal did not go ahead on Tuesday after party leaders withheld approval.

Sources: Daily Mirror, Hiru News.