The Colombo Magistrate’s Court on Monday adjourned to May 25 the case against Shashi Weerawansa, the wife of former Minister and National Freedom Front (NFF) leader Wimal Weerawansa, over allegations she obtained a diplomatic passport using forged documents.
Weerawansa, who is out on bail, appeared before court when the case was called, Ada Derana reported.
Defence attorney Buddhika Chandrasekara informed the bench that he wished to inspect the computer system used to generate the electronic documents at the centre of the case before the examination of witnesses begins. He argued that access to the system had not been provided under the Evidence Ordinance and that the trial could not proceed fairly without it.
The Magistrate directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to inform the court at the next hearing whether the defence would be granted access to inspect the computer system used to generate the prosecution’s electronic evidence before trial proceedings begin.
The case is one of several legal threads involving the Weerawansa household. NFF leader Wimal Weerawansa has been a vocal opposition voice this year, including criticising the judiciary in a May Day address and raising concerns about court-preview statements made by the President during a May Day rally.
The court ordered the matter to be recalled on May 25 for further hearing.
Source: Ada Derana.
