The number of vacancies in the superior courts has risen to seven, hampering their functions.

There are two vacancies in the Supreme Court and five in the Court of Appeal. All the vacancies have been created by retirement of judges.

Filling the vacancies has become problematic owing to the deadlock between President Ranil Wickremesinghe and the Constitutional Council (CC) over the proposed appointment of the President of the Court of Appeal Nissanka Bandula Karunaratne to the Supreme Court. The CC has so far rejected the recommendation made by President Wickremesinghe to appoint Justice Karunaratne to the Supreme Court.

The shortage of judges is felt most in the Court of Appeal. Owing to its five vacancies, two of the court’s benches do not function, raising concerns over a backlog of cases.

High Court Judges and Deputy Solicitors General at the Attorney General’s Department are qualified to be appointed to the superior courts.

The two positions in the Supreme Court fell vacant with the retirement of Justice Buwaneka Aluwihare in January and Priyantha Jayawardena in February. In the Court of Appeal, Justices Prasanna Silva, Lakshman Keerthisinghe, Neil Iddawala, Khema Swarnadhipathi and D.M. Samarakoon have retired. Justice Iddawala had retired to take up the post of Chairman of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption. The others had retired after reaching retirement age.

Another vacancy is due to be created in the Court of Appeal in October this year with the retirement of Justice Vikum Kaluarachchi.

(sundaytimes.lk)

(Except for the headline, this story, originally published by sundaytimes.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)

According to the Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, an amendment to the Penal Code is being proposed where the time spent in remand custody and the duration taken for the appeal hearing will be deducted from the total jail term. This initiative aims to address the disparity where some prisoners spend more time in remand custody and appeal processes than their actual jail sentences.

Minister Rajapakshe informed the Sunday Times that a committee, chaired by a High Court judge, will be responsible for determining the remission period to be granted. However, he clarified that individuals convicted for narcotic offenses and drug trafficking will not be eligible for remission.

The proposed amendment seeks to streamline the justice system by ensuring that individuals are not unfairly detained for extended periods beyond their prescribed sentences. This move underscores efforts to promote fairness and efficiency in the legal process.

The initiative, once approved by Parliament, is poised to bring significant changes to the penal system, offering relief to individuals who have faced prolonged periods in custody awaiting trial or appeal hearings.

Former Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Taranjit Singh Sandhu has joined India’s ruling BJP and is contesting the elections. After Sri Lanka, he also served in the United States.

He is a BJP candidate from the Amritsar seat and on Friday he declared his total assets worth Rs 39.92 crore, according to his poll affidavit, the NDTV reported.

Sandhu, 61, on Friday filed his nomination papers in Amritsar for the June 1 Lok Sabha polls.

According to his affidavit, Sandhu declared moveable and immovable assets owned by him and his wife to be Rs 10.88 crore and 29.04 crore, respectively.