The Colombo High Court issued summons on Irrigation and Water Resources Management State Minister Wasantha Senanayake yesterday to appear before court on March 16 to give evidence in connection with a case filed against Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera for allegedly possessing a baby elephant without a valid licence.
Accordingly, the case was fixed for trial on March 16 by High Court Judge Nissanka Bandula Karunaratne and five witnesses including the state minister. They were noticed to appear in Courts on the next trial date.
On January 2015, Senanayake who was the then Deputy Minister of Wildlife, had made a complaint with the Criminal Investigations Department regarding a racket where illegally caught wild elephant calves being sold to third parties.
The prosecution had named the former Wildlife Deputy Minister as the first witness in the case.
The Attorney General had filed an indictment against Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera on two counts for allegedly possessing a baby elephant without a valid licence.
The indictment has been filed over two counts come under section 22 (12) of the Fauna and Flora Protection (Amendment) Act, No.22 of 2009 and section 5(3) (a) of Public Property Act.
The Attorney General had named 19 persons as witnesses in the case and three documents as production items in the case.
The Wildlife Department officials had taken into custody a two and half year-old elephant calf found inside the Alan Mathiniyaramaya Temple in Polhengoda on January 28, 2015.
The Attorney General maintained that Dhammaloka Thera had illegally possessed a stolen property, a baby elephant without a valid licence, an offence under the Fauna and Flora Act. The Attorney General further alleged that the accused had also committed a punishable offence under the Public Property Act since he had intentionally kept a baby elephant without a valid licence.
The Attorney General alleged that the accused had committed this offence on or around January 28, 2015 with the Colombo High Court’s jurisdiction.
Senior State Counsel Janaka Bandara appeared for the Attorney General. President’s Counsel Prasantha Lal de Alwis appeared for the accused.
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