The Court of Appeal has found web journalist Desmond Chathuranga De Alwis guilty of contempt of court for uploading a web article containing false accusations against the judges of the Court of Appeal.
A three-judge bench of the Court of Appeal, comprising Justices Sobhitha Rajakaruna, Menaka Wijesundera and Mayadunne Corea, held that the charges against the accused were proven beyond any reasonable doubts. The court further ruled that the accused should be punished for such contempt.
However, the contempt of court proceedings were conducted in the absence of the accused, as he had evaded the court and left the country while a magisterial inquiry was still pending.
The Attorney General had filed a rule against the web journalist under Article 105 (3) of the Constitution based on a web article uploaded by him on lankanewsweb.org on April 30, 2020, hurling accusations of bribery and corruption against the judges of the Court of Appeal.
Additional Solicitor General Dilan Ratnayake PC with Deputy Solicitor General Chaya Sri Nammuni appeared for the Attorney General.
(dailymirror.lk)
(This story, originally published by dailymirror.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)
Sri Lanka Police have launched an investigation into a video going viral on social media, which depicts a female tuition teacher being escorted by police motorcycles and vehicles to an event organized by her.
Police Media Spokesperson SSP Buddhika Manathunga confirmed that the individual in question is a private tuition teacher who conducts classes for students preparing for the Grade 5 Scholarship Examination.
Addressing the controversy, SSP Manathunga explained that the Sri Lanka Police may provide officers and vehicles for specific public affairs — such as for filming a movie — but only after a thorough intelligence review of the request and its context, including the script.
He further clarified that police officers may also be deployed for public events such as musical shows or ticketed functions, but this is permitted only upon payment of a required fee.
In this particular case, the teacher is reported to have requested police support, claiming it was needed for a ceremony honoring students who had successfully passed the Grade 5 Scholarship Examination. The event was said to involve nearly 8,000 students and 35,000 parents.
However, preliminary investigations have revealed that the teacher may have used the police escort to boost her personal image, raising serious concerns about the misuse of state resources.
Police have since launched an inquiry into how the vehicles and officers were allocated for the event, and whether any police personnel were complicit in the unauthorized use of official resources, SSP Manathunga said.
According to reports, the SriLankan Airlines’ management has decided to immediately call up retired cabin crew members to service, following the ‘work to rule’ campaign launched by the Cabin Crew Members Association.
The SriLankan Airlines Cabin Crew Members Association launched a ‘work to rule’ campaign in April, citing several demands, including the reallocation of their onboard meal allowance.
In this backdrop, the national carrier is said to be operating with a reduced number of cabin crew which was further affected by the recent retirement of a significant number of experienced senior staff.
The staff were retired stating that individuals over the age of 60 would no longer be retained.
Efforts to extend the retirement age had been unsuccessful.
Even though they had directed a formal request to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Dec. 12, 2024, no response was received, reports add.
