Bid to let loose from Avant-Garde case Gota’s CA application deferred for 31 May

By S. S. Selvanayagam

Court of Appeal yesterday deferred for 31 May the revision application filed by former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse.

The Bench comprised Justices P. Padman Surasena (President/CA) and Arjuna Obeyesekere.

Petitioner Gotabhaya Rajapakse filed a revision application in the Court of Appeal on the High Court rejection of his application sought to acquit and release him from the Avant-Garde case.

He cited Director General of Bribery Commission as Complainant-Respondent and Sujatha Damayanthi Jayaratne, Piyasiri Fernando, Banda Fernando Egodawela, Somathilake Dissanayake, Nissanka Yapa Senadhipathy, Kumarasiri Kolambage and Jayantha Perera as Accused-Respondents.

He states the Director General of the Bribery Commission instituted proceedings in the Colombo Magistrate’s Court.

He also states that on the first opportunity available, his Counsel moved Court to raise a preliminary objection on the maintainability of the action wherein it was contended that the complainant had failed to satisfy a mandatory pre-requisite namely written sanction of the Commission.

He states that the Magistrate, on 17 November 2017, overruled the preliminary objections and moved to read the charges and ordered the suspects to record their plea for the charges which were read out in open Court.

Being aggrieved by the said orders of the Magistrate, he filed the application in the Colombo High Court for revisionary jurisdiction.

The High Court Judge, on 2 February, refused to issue notices and dismissed the petition.

Being aggrieved with this order, he has now filed a revision application in the Court of Appeal seeking to stay the proceedings in the Magistrate’s Court until the final determination of this petition, and to revise/set aside the orders of the High Court and allow him to revise the Magistrate’s Court.

Romesh de Silva PC appeared for the Petitioner. Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara appeared for the Attorney General.