Sanath Wijewardane Associates, on behalf of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in terms of Article 140 of the Constitution, has requested a copy of the Commission of Inquiry, commissioned by President Maithripala Sirisena on 22nd September, 2019; Committee of Inquiry into intelligence coordination and investigative processes related to the Easter Sunday bombing; Parliament Select Committee appointed by the Parliament to look into terrorist attacks that took place in different places on 21st April, 2019; and Committee of Inquiry into allegations made in the Channel-4 television programme, titled ‘Sri Lanka’s Easter Bombings – Dispatches,’ aired on 5th September, 2023.

The Court of Appeal yesterday (17) ordered that the petition, filed by the former President, be taken up for consideration today.

The petition will be taken up today before a bench comprising President of the Court of Appeal Justice Rohantha Abeysooriya and Justice Priyantha Fernando

According to the petition filed in the Court of Appeal seeking to prevent Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s arrest in connection with the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage, under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) , the respondents were IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya, Director CID Shani Abeysekara, OIC Special Investigation Unit CID Madhawa Gunawardena and Attorney General Parinda Ranasinghe , Jr, PC.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa, while acknowledging that a travel ban has been imposed on him, assured the Court of Appeal that he wouldn’t leave the country even if it was lifted and to fully cooperate with the investigations.

Claiming that he didn’t know of any other person than one Azad Moulana, seeking asylum in Switzerland, making allegations against him, Gotabaya Rajapaksa also explained to the court of the hatred the second respondent SSP Abeysekara could harbor against him over his removal from the position of Director CID as a result of accusations that he falsified evidence to fit a constructed narrative to secure prosecution over discovery of cache of weapons from the residence of a private individual in Nedimala.

Manori, wife of Maj. General Suresh Sallay, held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), since 25 February, 2026, has appealed to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference and senior members individually, including Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, to refrain from naming her husband as the alleged mastermind of the 2019 Easter Sunday terrorist attacks before the conclusion of the judicial proceedings.

Mrs Sallay also appealed to them to encourage that all public discourse surrounding the issue at hand reflected the Church’s unwavering commitment to justice, compassion, allowing the judiciary to determine the truth solely on the basis of evidence placed before them. She also complained about the position taken by the Church, particularly some spokesmen whom she named as Rev. Father Cyril Gamini Fernando and Rev. Father Jude Rohan Silva for advancing unsubstantiated allegations that he husband was the mastermind, in spite of the judicial proceedings remaining ongoing.

Having explained the conditions he had been held, before being moved to the National Hospital, Manori Sallay said: “Justice requires not only that investigations be fair and impartial, but that they must also be manifestly seen to be fair and impartial. Public confidence in the administration of justice is inevitably undermined when those whose own actions and omissions have been questioned in relation to the same tragic events are entrusted with investigating another individual connected with those events.”

She added: “It deeply concerns us that while these serious questions regarding institutional accountability remain unresolved, public attention has instead been directed almost exclusively towards portraying my husband as the alleged mastermind. This risks diverting attention away from legitimate questions of accountability while placing the entire burden of public blame upon one individual before any court has examined the evidence.

Mrs Sallay also brought to the notice of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference the torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment her husband was subjected to in the hands of the CID.

Former Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody yesterday said that he was not guilty when charges against him were read out in the Colombo High Court yesterday (17).

The trial in the case filed by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) NPP MP Jayakody commenced before the Colombo High Court.

According to the charges, the accused, while serving as Procurement and Import Manager at the Lanka Fertilizer Company in 2016, allegedly caused a loss of over Rs. 8.85 million to the government by acting in a manner that provided an undue advantage to a private company during a procurement process related to carpeting work at the Hunupitiya warehouse complex.

The case was taken up before Colombo High Court Judge Rashantha Godawela.

Jayakody resigned from the energy portfolio after accusations regarding corruption in coal procurement for 2025/2026 season.