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Hirunika Premachandra at High Court - Pic by Waruna Wanniarachchi
Former Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Hirunika Premachandra was sentenced to three years of rigorous imprisonment by the Colombo High Court yesterday.
The verdict was delivered by High Court judge Amal Ranaraja. He declared in open court that the defendant was guilty of conspiracy and aiding and abetting the abduction of a youth.
Accordingly, Premachandra was found guilty of 18 charges, with the court ordering a fine of Rs. 20,000 for each charge. The court further stipulated that failure to pay the fines would result in an additional six months imprisonment for each charge.
She had faced 18 charges involving the abduction, wrongful detention and assault of a youth on 21 December 2015. The victim, Amila Priyanka Amarasinghe had been employed at a textile shop in Dematagoda at the time. He alleged a group instructed by Premachandra had abducted him in a black Defender jeep on the day and assaulted him over a relationship with a woman identified as Chamila Geethani.
Before the sentencing, Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara, representing the plaintiff, recalled that eight of the defendant’s supporters had previously pleaded guilty and received suspended prison terms and fines from the Colombo High Court. He also emphasised that, given the severity of the offences, the court had the authority to sentence the defendant to 69 years of rigorous imprisonment.
The Deputy Solicitor General highlighted the seriousness of the matter, pointing out that the defendant had abused her powers as a Member of Parliament to abduct a citizen in an attempt to resolve a domestic dispute. He stressed that such an abuse of authority could not be taken lightly.
The Deputy Solicitor General said the case is a very serious matter, warranting imprisonment for the accused. He argued that it would be inappropriate to convert the sentence into a suspended sentence. He emphasised before the court that the defendant must be convinced of her wrongdoing and that society should be made aware of the crime she committed.
He argued that the punishment should be imposed in a manner that demonstrates that those who abide by the law will receive its protection.
Anura Maddegoda PC, representing the defendant Hirunika Premachandra, presented facts before the court, emphasising that the defendant has three young children aged three, four, and five years. He argued that imprisoning her would severely affect her children and requested the court to consider a lenient sentence without imprisonment for the defendant.
Following the sentence, Anura Maddegoda PC informed the court that the defendant will file an appeal against the decision. Premachandra is currently in the custody of prison officials and has reportedly been taken to the women’s wing of the Welikada Prison.
Previously eight other accused who pleaded guilty to their involvement in the abduction were given suspended prison sentences by the Colombo High Court. However, former MP Hirunika Premachandra was the only one among the accused who maintained her innocence in the case.
Making a statement from a dock at a previous hearing Premachandra informed the court that on the day of the alleged incident, she had attended a discussion with former Minister Rajitha Senaratne before going on to another event. She further claimed that she was at that event at the time of the incident and that one of the accused, who had pleaded guilty before the court, had seized her Defender without her consent and used it to abduct the victim.
