The Attorney General (AG) informed the Supreme Court today (29 November) that he will no longer represent former Inspector General of Police (IGP) C. D. Wickramaratne and former Defence Ministry Secretary, retired Army Major General Kamal Gunaratne, in the fundamental rights petition filed by Shani Abeysekera, the former Director of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), challenging his suspension.

The petition, which names Wickramaratne and Gunaratne as respondents, was heard before a three-member Supreme Court bench comprising S. Thurairaja, A. H. M. D. Nawaz, and Priyantha Fernando. Additional Solicitor General Viveka Siriwardena, representing the respondents, confirmed that the AG would cease to represent them. The bench noted that the respondents have the right to hire private legal counsel for their defence.

The hearing of the petition was adjourned to 3 February 2025.

Background

Following the 2019 presidential election, Shani Abeysekera was transferred from his position as CID Director and assigned as the personal assistant to the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Galle. He later filed this fundamental rights petition, claiming that his suspension violated his Fundamental Rights.