Sri Lanka’s Attorney General has informed the court that several individuals, including Sri Lanka’s former Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa, have failed to hand in their passports to court despite being ordered to do so.
The revelation follows unrest in Colombo in which the houses of government-aligned politicians were set alight and pro-Rajapaksa mobs clashed with anti-government demonstrators. Prime Minister Rajapaksa was forced to flee his home and sought shelter in a heavily guarded Navy camp in Trincomalee.
Amongst the individuals who have refused to hand in their passports are DIG Deshabandu Tennakoon and Colombo Municipal Council member Mahinda Kahandagama.
During the court proceedings, concern was raised over the failure of Sri Lanka’s criminal investigation department to conduct an impartial investigation into the Senior Police DIG in charge of the Western Province Deshabandu Tennakoon. He is charged with purposefully neglecting his duty to prevent violence between pro-Rajapaksa and anti-government protesters.
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