Press statement on
behalf of the chief justice by the lawyers of the chief justice
( December 12, 2012, Colombo, Sri
Lanka Guardian) The media has quoted the Government Members of the
Parliamentary Select Committee as having stated that they have found the Chief
Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake guilty of the 1st, 4th
and 5th allegations in the impeachment motion while exonerating her of
the 2nd and 3rd allegations.
The Chief Justice is yet to be
issued a copy of the evidence and the findings of the Government Members of the
Select Committee. It is understood that the Report was submitted just hours
after the Government Members of the Select Committee concluded hearing
witnesses.
As soon as she is furnished with
the same the Chief Justice will respond to the report of the Government Members
and to the ex-parte evidence which was given in her absence, without any notice
being given to her and which was given devoid of cross-examination. The Chief
Justice re-iterates that if the said witnesses were cross-examined by her
counsel, she would have been able to demonstrate the untruthfulness of the
evidence of the key witnesses hurriedly summoned.
The Chief Justice’s position is that
the findings of the Government Parliamentarians in the Select Committee do not
constitute a report of the Select Committee since the Opposition Members on the
Select Committee had withdrawn from the proceedings and they were not given an
opportunity to submit their observations.
The proceedings before the
Government Members of the Select Committee are fundamentally flawed since the
proceedings were unfair, conducted without a proper procedure being adopted,
conducted without giving the Chief Justice an opportunity to cross-examine
witnesses and without observing the rules of natural justice or the elementary
standards of fairness. In fact after the Chief Justice was informed that only
documentary evidence will be used at the inquiry, after the Chief Justice
walked out of the Select Committee, the very next day sixteen witnesses were
called and their evidence led without any notice to the Chief Justice and
without making them available for cross-examination.
Yesterday’s observations made by
Sri Lanka’s most eminent Judge and Jurist Dr. C.G. Weeramanthry, confirm the
Chief Justice’s contention that she never received a fair or impartial hearing
from the Government Members of the Select Committee.
It is noteworthy that even when
evidence was led ex parte (that is,
in the absence of the Chief Justice and her lawyers , in the absence of cross
examination and in the absence of evidence being put forward by the Chief
Justice) yet there was no evidence to justify allegations 2 and 3 which were
made without supporting evidence and the question arises as to the basis in
which 117 Members of the Parliament signed the impeachment motion putting
forward the said charges.
The Government Members of the Parliamentary
Select Committee have also stated that they will not even look in to the charges
bearing numbers 6 to 14, although the Select Committee was mandated by the
Speaker to look in to all charges including the said charges numbered 6 to 14.
The Chief Justice has at all
times maintained that she is innocent of all charges which are baseless and framed
purely with malicious intent. She has always stated that there is no evidence
whatsoever in support of the charges framed against her. Her stance is now
vindicated. It is hoped that suitable action would be taken against the aforesaid
parties for framing charges against a sitting Chief Justice which could not
even be maintained at an ex parte hearing.
She will as soon as the report of
the Government Members of the Select Committee is made available respond to the
findings, demonstrate that the findings are incorrect and she is innocent of
the charges.
