Writ of Quo Warranto against Mahinda: CA defers argument for 21 February

By S.S. Selvanayagam

The Court of Appeal yesterday deferred for 21 February the Writ of Quo Warranto Petition against Mahinda Rajapaksa and 48 others. The Bench comprised Justices Deepali Wijesundera (Acting President/CA) and Arjuna Obeysekera.

The Court issued an Interim Order restraining Mahinda Rajapaksa and 48 other respondents from functioning in the offices of Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers, non-Cabinet Ministers and Deputy Ministers respectively, until the final hearing and determination of the Writ of Quo Warranto Writ petition filed by 122 Parliamentarians of diverse parties disputing the holding of offices.

Petitioners in their writ of Quo Warranto Petition require the Respondents to show in what authority they claim to function as Prime Minister and respective offices as Cabinet Ministers and non-Cabinet Ministers and Deputy Ministers.

K. Kanag-Iswaran PC with Ikram Mohammad PC, A.M. Faiz, Viran Corea and Suren Fernando appeared for the Petitioners.

Gamini Marapana PC with Navin Marapana as well as Romesh de Silva PC, Manohara de Silva PC, Sanjeeva Jayawardena PC, Ali Sabry PC and Shaveendra Fernando PC appeared for the respondents.

The Petition for Writ of Quo Warranto (a writ or legal action requiring a person to show by what warrant an office or franchise is held, claimed, or exercised) was filed by purported Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his purported Ministers, as well as Parliamentarians of diverse parties, totalling 122 petitioners.

Petitioners sought mandate from the Court requiring the Respondents to show by what authority they claim to function as Prime Minister and/or Ministers and/or Deputy Ministers.

They also sought the Court for a declaration that the Respondents are not entitled to hold the office of Prime Ministers and Ministers or Deputy Ministers.

 They asked the Court to restrict the Respondents from functioning as Prime Minister, Ministers and Deputy Ministers until the final determination and hearing of their application.