Ex-CJ Shirani acquitted of bribery charges

Former Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake was acquitted and released of all charges brought by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption.

Colombo Chief Magistrate Gihan Pilapitiya acquitted Dr. Bandaranayake after the petition filled by the Commission was withdrawn.

The Magistrate also removed the overseas travel restriction that was imposed on her. The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption during the previous government of Mahinda Rajapaksa has filed three cases against the former Chief Justice.

The Commission charged that Dr. Bandaranayke, the first female Chief Justice of Sri Lanka, has failed to declare the two accounts in her annual declaration for three consecutive years from 2010.

Shirani Bandaranayake, the 43rd Chief Justice of Sri Lanka, was impeached by Parliament and then removed from office by President Mahinda Rajapaksa in January 2013.

She was accused of a number of charges including financial impropriety and interfering in legal cases, all of which she has denied.