Sajeewani Dilka Lakmali Karunanayake was sworn in as a Judge of the Court of Appeal before President Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the Presidential Secretariat on Thursday.
Karunanayake previously served as an Additional Solicitor General at the Attorney General’s Department, Ada Derana reported, citing the President’s Media Division. The appointment fills a vacant position on the Court of Appeal.
Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake was present at the ceremony. Daily Mirror carried the same account, giving her prior post and the vacancy as the reason for the appointment.
The two outlets place the ceremony at different times of day — Ada Derana reports it took place “this evening”, Daily Mirror “this afternoon”. They also render the surname differently: Ada Derana writes Karunanayake, Daily Mirror writes Karunannayake. This report uses the Ada Derana spelling, which matches the form used across our earlier coverage.
The appointment lands in the middle of a dispute over the judiciary
The vacancy is being filled while the composition and tenure of the higher courts are the subject of an active constitutional dispute.
The proposed 22nd Amendment would raise the retirement age of Supreme Court judges from 65 to 67 and of Court of Appeal judges from 63 to 65. A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court concluded its hearing of the petitions challenging the Bill on September 2, with its determination to go to the Speaker. The Bar Association of Sri Lanka, more than 40 trade unions and the Commonwealth Lawyers Association have all raised objections to the amendment or to the way it is being taken.
Neither report connects the appointment to that dispute, and neither says whose departure created the vacancy.
Not reported
Neither outlet gave Karunanayake’s date of appointment to the Attorney General’s Department, her length of service there, the vacancy’s origin, or whether further appointments to the Court of Appeal are pending. Neither reported any remarks made at the ceremony.
