The Attorney General yesterday filed an appeal in the Court of Appeal seeking a re-trial into the murder of TNA former MP Nadaraja Raviraj.
The appeal was filed before Colombo High Court’s registrar and it is to be referred to the Court of Appeal in due course. On December 23, 2016, three Navy intelligence officers and two others, accused in the Raviraj murder were acquitted and released from the case after they were found not guilty by jury trial.
In its appeal, the Attorney General observed that it was inappropriate and imprudent of expecting the jury to consider the facts and laws in the trial that was heard December 23, 2016 until after midnight.
The Attorney General maintained the trial process was not appropriate and reasonable to make a just and fare verdict.
The Attorney General further observed that there were several deficiencies in the summing up of the trial judge. The Attorney General contended that several important legal concepts which are relevant to the case were not considered by the trial judge.
The High Court allowed to proceed with the Raviraj murder trial in absentia of the three accused Palana Sami Suresh alias Sami, Sivakanthan Vivekanandan alias Charan and Fabian Royston Toussaint who were evading Court since the initiation of investigations.
The indictments were filed against six accused Palana Sami Suresh alias Sami, Prasad Chandana Kumara alias Sampath, Gamini Seneviratne, Pradeep Chaminda alias Vajira, Sivakanthan Vivekanandan alias Charan and Fabian Royston Toussaint on five counts, including committing the murder of Raviraj and his security officer Lokuwella Murage Laksman under the provisions of the PTA and Penal Code.
Three accused who were not present before Court, had been identified as ex-LTTE cadres affiliated to the Karuna faction. Wijeya Wickrema Manamperige Sanjaya Preethi Viraj was made state witness in the Raviraj murder trial.
Raviraj was shot dead near his residence at Manning Town in Narahenpita between November 9, 2006 and November 10, 2006 when he was driving his vehicle along Martha Road. The CID recovered the trishaw and the weapon alleged to have been used in the killing of the former Parliamentarian.
Add new comment