Assistant Superintendent of Police Nalinda Dilruk and Superintendent of Police Roshan Dias were issued summons by the Colombo Fort Magistrate Thilina Gamage and were ordered to be present in court on November 8.
The Colombo Fort Magistrate ordered summons to be issued based on a private plaint filed by the President of the Young Journalists Association, Journalist Tharindu Jayawardhana accusing the duo of blocking a peaceful protest by lawyers and professionals. Jayawardhana maintains that the march was blocked by the two top cops and their subordinates despite the organisers informing the Police of their intention of holding a protest six hours prior to the event as stipulated.
Magistrate Thilina Gamage ordered that summons be served by fiscal and registered mail as there are sufficient facts to issue notices against the two police officers named as accused in this complaint under Section 330 of the Penal Code and Section 59.1 of the National Highways Act.
Attorneys-at-law Manujaya de Silva and Jayantha Dehiyattage, in addition to Saliya Peiris PC presented facts on behalf of the plaintiff, Tharindu Jayawardena.
Peiris told courts that lawyers and professionals had organised a protest against the conduct of the Police at a previous peaceful gathering, and the intention to hold the peaceful march on May 10 at 3 p.m. had been informed to the Colombo Fort OIC the night before by email and Whatsapp. He said the email had also been copied to the Inspector General of Police.
He said however the Police had obstructed the road as well as the pedestrian pavement preventing the group of 50 – 100 protestors including the complainant from moving forward. Peiris said videos relating to the incident have also been submitted to the courts.
The President’s Counsel said the two suspect cops had actively taken part in the said obstruction and ignored the claims by protestors that the Police had already been informed of the march. “When observing their behaviour it is evident they did not obstruct in good faith” he pointed out.
Peiris stated that these two officers committed these offences and violated the fundamental rights protected by the Constitution even though the police had been informed about the protest on that day and the court had also rejected a request by the police to stop the protest.
