Probe Gota’s dual citizenship: Court orders CID

Colombo Chief Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne ordered the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to probe the American and Sri Lankan citizenship of former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and report its progress to court upon conclusion of the investigation. The magistrate also laid by the brief without fixing a date for inquiry.

The magistrate made this order consequent to a complaint filed by the CID before court alleging that human rights activists Professor Chandraguptha Thenuwara and L.A.C. Uyangoda had complained to the CID that former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, while being an American citizen, had come to Sri Lanka on tourist visa and was engaged in propaganda for his candidature at the forthcoming presidential election.

The CID told court this was a violation of the Presidential Election Act and that MPs Wimal Weerawansa and Udaya Gammanpila had made speeches in this respect to Hiru and Derana television channels.

The CID sought an order from the magistrate to obtain the unedited version of visuals from the two TV stations.

The magistrate ordered both TV channels to issue unedited copies of the visuals to the CID. She also ordered the CID to record statements from the witness and to report court of its progress. (T. Farook Thajudeen)