CJ vs The Monks; CJ comes out on top

by Dushy Ranetunge in London

(September 09, London, Sri Lanka Guardian)In the court of public opinion, in the case of the Chief Justice (CJ) vs the monks, the CJ has clearly come out on top, going by the various comments posted on web sites and comments by the general public.

This has proved to be an important case in testing support for the more radical elements in the Buddhist clergy who have suggested among others to carry out Sabda pooja (more noise pollution), a special court for Buddhist monks and even request for a Parliamentary select committee to investigate the Chief Justice.

If it was possible in Buddhism to declare a Soloman Rushdie style fatwa on the Chief Justice, even this might have been done by now.

The call for a Parliametary Select Committee investigation into the CJ came from the Ven. Galagodatte Gnanasara Thera, Director of the National Observation Centre against Unethical Conversions. He had stated that the CJ had demeaned the Buddhist clergy in a recent ruling, and verdicts had been questionable in around 100 cases heard by him. The monk seems to be questioning the verdicts of the Supreme Court, possibly placing him in contempt of court.

He has even taken a pot shot at the Mahanayake's by stating that the top prelates had been out of their mind and belittled Buddhist traditions when the CJ challenged the dignity of the clergy.
Earlier a Mahanayake had come out in support of the Chief Justice and declared that the Buddhist priests must respect the law of the country. He suggested that they should stand and pay respects in Parliament and in court.

Since President J R Jayawarene's Presidential constitution has placed the office of the President somewhat above the law, it seems that some of these radical monks also want to place the Buddhist Sanga above or outside the laws of the Republic.

Ven. Gnanasara Thera had also stated that had the country's chief justice been a non-Buddhist, there would not have been a ruling against a monk in that manner
Lakshman Hettigoda, a reader, of the Lanka dissent website had posted a comment that “had the CJ been a non Buddhist he would have been crucified by now.”

There has also been a call for a Sanga-raja to be appointed.

Other than the case involving the Buddhist monk in relation to noise pollution, another monk had been arrested last week for vandalizing a Hindu temple in Colombo North.

There is little or no support for these radical monks and comments by the JHU this week, trying to deflect some of the flak coming its way from the radicals, dangerously exposes it in the eyes of the general public. The JHU may face a similar fate as what the JVP faced in the recent provincial council elections and face political obliteration.

Many have compared the Rajapakse presidency to be in the same mould as that of the SWRD Bandaranayake's legacy. SWRD quite unintentionally gave the loony fringe of the Buddhist priests a sense of empowerment and in the end met his end at the hands of a Buddhist monk.

Rajapakse must be careful to distance himself from these radicals. The likes of Mervin Silva and the mad monks will only bring him grief and facilitate his downfall.
- Sri Lanka Guardian