The Jaffna Bar Association has raised serious concerns over the sudden transfer of Jaffna High Court Judge A.G. Alexraja to the Civil Appellate High Court of Badulla, just over a month after his appointment, alleging the Governor of the Northern Province had sought interference from the government to engineer the move.
In a letter to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the Association said the transfer — scheduled to take effect on May 31 — came after Judge Alexraja issued interim orders against the Governor in certain writ petitions, Newswire reported. Justice Alexraja was appointed to the Jaffna High Court on April 22, and his redeployment to Badulla within a month “has sparked speculation of external influence,” the Bar said.
The Association acknowledged that the Judicial Services Commission has the prerogative to transfer judicial officers under the Constitution, but warned that “unexplained and sudden transfers” risked undermining public confidence in the judiciary. “Even the slightest impression of interference in the workings of the judiciary is a very serious issue,” it said.
Bar members urged the President to investigate the allegation as a matter of priority and requested a meeting with the head of state to set out their concerns in person.
The letter is the first formal escalation from the Northern legal community to the Presidential Secretariat over what they characterise as political pressure on the Northern bench, and lands as the new Tamil Nadu government has stepped up its engagement on cross-Palk Strait issues and the Defence establishment has intensified its Jaffna footprint. The Northern Province Governor has not publicly responded to the allegations at the time of writing.
Sources: Jaffna Bar Association raises concerns over transfer of High Court Judge — Newswire.
