Court orders CID to record statement from State Minister Maheswaran over Jaffna schoolgirl murder

The Kayts Magistrate Court has ordered the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to record a statement from State Minister of Child Affairs Vijayakala Maheswaran regarding the allegation that she helped the main suspect of the rape and murder of Jaffna schoolgirl Sivaloganathan Vidya to flee.

It has been alleged that the State Minister has allowed the suspect Swiss Kumar, who was captured by the villagers and tied to a lamp post, to flee from the police.

Kayts Magistrate Mohammed Mihal ordered the CID to record a statement from the Minister and commence an investigation into the allegation.

The magistrate gave the order considering the submissions made by the counsels representing the Senior DIG Lalith Anuruddha Jayasinghe, who was arrested and remanded for abetting the main suspect to escape. His lawyers drew the attention of the court to the State Minister’s involvement when the case against the senior police officer was taken up.

The attorneys representing Jayasinghe revealed in court that the ninth suspect of the schoolgirl’s murder, Mahalingam Sashi Kumar, alias Swiss Kumar, was caught by the villagers and tied to a lamppost for the police to arrest. However, Minister Maheswaran has allegedly freed the suspect instead of handing him to the police. The counsel told the court that the CID has not investigated the allegation against the Minister.

Following extensive investigations, the CID earlier this month arrested Jaffna Senior DIG Lalith Jayasinghe for assisting the suspect to escape police custody.

The magistrate, taking into consideration the statements, ordered the CID to record a statement from State Minister Maheswaran and also to probe how the former Dean of the Law Faculty of the Colombo University, Thamil Maran, learned of the suspect.

The 18-year-old schoolgirl Sivaloganathan Vidya was kidnapped, gang raped and murdered on Pungudutivu Island in Jaffna in May 2015.

The gang rape and the killing shook the island nation, sparking violent protests in Jaffna calling for justice for the young victim.

The police have arrested nine suspects including Swiss Kumar in connection with the heinous crime and they remain in remand custody.