Charges to choke CJ

Wednesday, 7 November 2012 01:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

14 charges of misconduct in impeachment motion against Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake enters P’ment Order papers
Non declaration of foreign remittances amounting to Rs. 34 m in NDB account

Alleged to have purchased Trillium apartment while hearing Ceylinco case

Abuse of power as JSC Chairperson
Power to hinder justice in husband’s corruption case
Motion says she has brought disrepute to judicial system,office of CJ

By Dharisha Bastians

Fourteen charges of misconduct against Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake, as cited in the motion of impeachment filed against her by the ruling coalition, were included in the Parliament’s Order Papers yesterday.

Item number 20 on the Order Paper dated Tuesday, 6 November, states: Resolution as per Article 107(2) of the Constitution for a motion of Parliament to be presented to His Excellency the President for the removal of the Hon. (Dr.) (Mrs.) Upatissa Atapattu Bandaranayake Wasala Mudiyanse Ralahamilage Shirani Anshumala Bandaranayake from the office of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.

The 14 charges range from alleged conflicts of interests pertaining to cases heard before Chief Justice Bandaranayake and certain financial transactions, to non declaration of assets, abuse of her position as Chairperson of the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) to harass magistrates, unconstitutional appointments to the JSC and constitutional violation with regard to the delivery of determinations to the Speaker.

With reference to the corruption case against her husband Pradeep Kariyawasam, the impeachment motion says that in her capacity as JSC Chairperson the Chief Justice was vested with powers to transfer and remove magistrates and peruse judicial records and could hinder the administration of justice.

Charge # 9 even refers to a Fundamental Rights petition filed against her appointment to the Supreme Court and argues that she has acted in contravention of the ruling given in that case during her time on the Bench. Charge #10 makes reference to an article written by Bandaranayake during her tenure as a lecturer at the University of Colombo’s Faculty of Law.

According to the impeachment motion as cited in the Order Paper, Chief Justice Bandaranayake has brought the entire judicial system and the office of the Chief Justice into disrepute by (i) acting in the manner cited in the charges, which amounts to improper conduct or conduct unbecoming of a person holding the office of the Chief Justice, (ii) being involved in matters that could amount to causes of action or controversial matters, (iii) influencing the administration of justice (iv)showing bias towards petitioners and being subject to allegations of bias against her.

The charges contained in the impeachment motion signed by 117 MPs have been filed in accordance with Article 107 (3) and Article 107 (2) of the constitution and 78 A of the standing orders of parliament. The motion was handed over to the Speaker on 1 November by a group of five UPFA MPs and follows weeks of posturing between the judiciary and the ruling coalition.

Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.