Former Health Minister and Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Rajitha Senaratne yesterday alleged that the Government’s proposal to increase the retirement age of Supreme Court and Court of Appeal judges was politically motivated and intended to target opposition politicians.
Addressing the media, Senaratne questioned the rationale behind extending the retirement age of judges by two years, arguing that if the Government’s genuine objective was to expedite the hearing of pending cases, it would have filled the long-standing judicial vacancies instead.
He pointed out that four vacancies in the Supreme Court and five in the Court of Appeal had remained unfilled for more than a year, despite repeated concerns over the mounting case backlog.
“What they are trying to do here is wait until those they don’t want retire, then extend the terms. The only thing they want to do by this is to jail the people in the opposition,” Senaratne claimed.
He further alleged that the Government was attempting to consolidate power by weakening the opposition, enabling it to disregard public concerns over the rising cost of living, corruption, and trade union demands.
Senaratne also called on the public and members of the judiciary to safeguard the independence of the judicial system, warning that failure to do so could pave the way for what he described as a “dictatorial government.”
