Opposition, lawyers slam Ranil Wickremesinghe for defying Supreme Court order
The Hindu
Sri Lanka President faces backlash for defying Supreme Court order on police chief appointment, risking democracy and justice.
COLOMBO
Sri Lanka’s President Ranil Wickremesinghe has drawn sharp criticism over his government’s defiant response to a recent Supreme Court decision, which senior lawyers and critics say, amounts to “wilful disregard” of the Constitution.
The attack comes in the wake of an interim order issued by the island nation’s top court on July 24, 2024, in regard to the President’s appointment of the police chief.
The order restrained Inspector General of Police Deshabandu Tennakoon from continuing in the post and asked Mr. Wickremesinghe to appoint a suitable official to the post for the period of the stay.
The Supreme Court’s ruling followed nine Fundamental Rights petitions challenging the IGP’s appointment, mostly on constitutional grounds.
The senior police official’s appointment has remained controversial also because the Supreme Court in December 2023 held him personally responsible for torture in a 2011 case.
Following the recent court order, Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena told Parliament that the government refused to accept the decision. The post of IGP was not vacant and therefore prevented the President from appointing an acting IGP, he contended.