The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption has decided to investigate the Commission of Inquiry appointed by the President to look into political revenge.
A ten-member panel of lawyers has lodged a complaint with the chairman of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption seeking legal action against the government for misappropriating large sums of public money due to the abuse of power.
In a letter to lawyers Senaka Perera, Namal Rajapaksa and Thambiah Jayaratne, the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption has stated that it has decided to investigate the allegations after studying the complaint.
Senaka Perera, Sainul Lutufi, Manjula Sri Chandrasena, Achala Seneviratne, Thambiah Jayaratne, Hemantha Wickramasinghe, Namal Rajapaksa, Upali Ratnayake, Ashoka Wijewardena and Chula Adhikari were the ten Supreme Court lawyers who filed the petition.
The Commission of Inquiry into Political Revenge was set up by President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on January 9, 2020 in a special gazette notification to look into allegations of political revenge during the previous government. Their report was handed over to President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa late last year.
According to the gazette notification issued by the Commission, the Commission is empowered to belong to the categories of Public Officers who have been subjected to political retaliation from January 08, 2015 to November 16, 2019, Members of the Armed Forces and Members of the Sri Lanka Police. The team of lawyers had pointed out in their complaint that they were only looking into individuals.
Despite this, the team of lawyers has pointed out to the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption that the Commission is also investigating persons belonging to categories not included in the Gazette.
The lawyers argue that this is a misuse of government funds.
It is observed that a large amount of government money has been wasted and misappropriated due to the investigation into persons outside the aforesaid categories who have abused their power and abused their power. ”
The Bar Council had also submitted twenty-two examples to the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption to prove that the Commission appointed to look into political revenge had acted beyond its authority.
The Commission on Political Revenge has been in operation for nearly a year and the government has spent a huge amount of money on its maintenance and other functions.
“Since this money is the money of the people, it would be a waste of public money to go beyond the powers vested in that gazette notification.”
Retired Supreme Court Judge Upali Abeyratne (Chairman), Retired Court of Appeal Judge Daya Chandrasiri Jayatilake and Retired IGP Chandra Praranandu were appointed as members of the Commission of Inquiry appointed by the President to look into political revenge.
On March 9, the ten Supreme Court lawyers asked the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption to bring the matter to the attention of the Commission and take the necessary legal action as they have committed an offense punishable under Section 70 of the Bribery Act.