A case filed against former President Ranil Wickremesinghe over allegedly misusing public property to travel to London to attend his wife’s graduation ceremony was taken up before Colombo Fort Magistrate Isuru Neththikumara on the 28th.
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Appearing on behalf of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Additional Solicitor General Dileep Peiris informed court that an investigation had been conducted into the medical reports submitted by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe. At that time, Wickremesinghe was seated in the dock, and Dileep Peiris questioned who had granted him permission to sit.
Subsequently, Colombo Fort Magistrate Isuru Neththikumara cautioned Ranil Wickremesinghe, stating that there is a proper procedure through which court proceedings must flow. Additional Solicitor General Dileep Peiris then continued his submissions.
“Your Honour, at first it was claimed that there was bleeding from a valve. Even in the suspect’s conduct, there are ‘valves’. Once he was remanded, he was taken to a prison hospital. From there, he was transferred to the National Hospital. From there, he was placed in the Intensive Care Unit. A nationwide publicity campaign was carried out as if he was about to die. Somehow, bail was obtained. Your Honour, he is occupying a section of the ICU, reading books with his associates and taking photographs with doctors. A person who misused public property once has gone there and is misusing public property again. How many people are on waiting lists, unable to access the ICU at the National Hospital? Your Honour, the bail granted is not the end of this matter. I will definitely raise this again in the future. I want to say clearly that this is not over.”
At this point, lawyers representing Ranil Wickremesinghe asked, “So, are you saying this is an act of revenge?”
Following this, heated arguments erupted between both parties, causing unrest in the courtroom.
The Magistrate restored order, after which the Additional Solicitor General continued.
“Your Honour, we deployed a team of officers to England. At that time, three lawyers including Ronald Perera and Anuja Premaratne came to meet the Attorney General and questioned how Shani Abeysekera’s police team travelled to England without informing him. The Attorney General is fully satisfied with the legality of that action. An attempt was made to create division among us, but I want to state clearly that such divisions will not occur.”
Once again, loud arguments broke out between both sides, and the Magistrate intervened to bring the situation under control.
“Your Honour, we obtained statements from our High Commission in London. We learned that Ranil Wickremesinghe attended the relevant ceremony and sat on a chair in the general balcony. He was not invited to the stage.”
The Magistrate then asked Dileep Peiris whether, among the 26 conclusions presented in the ‘B’ report, there was any indication that this was an official visit.
“Your Honour, there are four types of travel — official, state, diplomatic, and private. A visit can only be considered official if there is state involvement from the host country. No one came to receive Ranil Wickremesinghe. Somisara Ekanayake, or Saman Ekanayake who accompanied him, travels to the United States, but not to the United Kingdom. Your Honour, the suspect submitted a letter claiming he received an invitation, but that letter was never received by the High Commission. All these facts reveal that this was not an official visit. Furthermore, Your Honour, people even post photos when attending funerals. If this were an official visit, where are the photographs? A former photographer from the Presidential Media Unit stated that there are no photos or videos from the United Kingdom. Saman Ekanayake himself said he only learned it was a graduation ceremony after returning to Sri Lanka.”
The Magistrate then asked whether there was any reason a private trip mentioned in documents was later changed into an official visit. Dileep Peiris replied, “No.”
Thereafter, President’s Counsel Tilak Marapana, appearing for Ranil Wickremesinghe, made submissions to court.
“Your Honour, I am not in the habit of speaking nonsense. Ninety percent of what was said has nothing to do with me. On several occasions, it was said that the letter is fake. Why not question the person who signed it at the university to verify whether it is genuine or not? We do not know what was done in London. Searching for files from the Presidential Secretariat and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is like asking the thief’s mother to identify the suspect.”
The Magistrate then asked whether an invitation from a university constitutes an official invitation. The lawyer replied, “Yes.”
The Magistrate then asked Dileep Peiris whether a statement had been obtained from the university regarding the letter.
“Your Honour, this is a purely private university. It does not belong to the British Government and does not even receive semi-state sponsorship. Your Honour, all investigations relating to the suspect are complete. We expect to proceed with the complaint before a three-member trial-at-bar. Indictments will definitely be filed in March. Furthermore, Attorney Kalinga Indratissa stated that Somisara Ekanayake had returned. If so, call him to the dock.”
Following this, lawyers for Ranil Wickremesinghe made further submissions.
“Your Honour, I will ask one question. What if a President falls ill while in London? For example, President Anura has travelled seven times to see his mother.”
“Your Honour, I object. This is an attempt to politicize the matter.”
Once again, unrest arose in court. While restoring order, the Magistrate stated, “This court values facts, not noise.”
The court then granted permission to name Saman Ekanayake as the second suspect in the case. President’s Counsel Kalinga Indratissa appeared on his behalf.
“Your Honour, my client is present in court. He has no intention of absconding. I reject the allegation that he is hiding.”
“He is clearly an offender capable of evading the law. There has been no communication since the 22nd. He has disappeared with his wife. That is not a simple matter either. He cooked fish and dried sprats for the neighbour and asked them to feed the cat.”
“Your Honour, he called me. Does that mean a ghost called me?”
“This demonstrates his abuse of power. He is trying to say the CID will not come because they will come to court. He is the one who affixed the state emblem for the misuse of public funds. Without his approval, this could not have happened. Further investigations are needed regarding him. Statements obtained from him may even require obtaining further statements from Ranil Wickremesinghe.”
After considering the submissions of both parties, the Magistrate stated that nearly Rs. 16 million had been misused in connection with the incident and that the Presidential Secretary should personally look into expenses related to presidential travel. The Magistrate further observed that, based on the facts presented, this appeared to be a private visit.
The Magistrate ordered that the second suspect, Saman Ekanayake, be remanded until the 11th due to negligence and lack of due diligence in releasing funds. The CID was also ordered to immediately obtain a statement from the University of Wolverhampton in London regarding the relevant documents, noting that it would be preferable if this could be done from Sri Lanka.
