Saturday Oct 03, 2026
Saturday Oct 03, 2026
Saturday, 3 October 2026 00:31 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa
The Court of Appeal has dismissed, without taking it up for hearing, a writ petition filed by former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa seeking to prevent his arrest and detention under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) in connection with investigations into the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks.
A writ petition asks a court to order public officials to take, or refrain from taking, a specific action. Rajapaksa had sought an order preventing the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) from arresting or detaining him as part of its ongoing investigation into the attacks.
The petition named the Inspector General of Police, CID Director Shani Abeysekera, the officer in charge of the CID’s Special Investigations Unit and the Attorney General as respondents.
The Court had earlier heard submissions from counsel for Rajapaksa and the respondents before reserving its decision on whether the petition should be allowed to proceed.
Rajapaksa had also sought interim protection from arrest while the petition was under consideration. During earlier proceedings, the Attorney General’s Department informed the Court that it was unable to give an undertaking that Rajapaksa would not be arrested without first obtaining instructions from the relevant respondents.
The petition was filed amid the CID’s continuing investigation into the attacks of 21 April, 2019.
Rajapaksa has denied involvement in the attacks and has contested allegations linking him to them. The dismissal of the petition does not amount to a finding of criminal liability.
