SRI LANKA: Long delay obtaining justice for the alleged fabricated charge against a married couple

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about the alleged fabricated charges against Mr. J.D.Jayatilaka and his wife which were instigated in from 2001. Mrs. Jayatilaka was arrested for the allegation for illegal possession of grenades on 19 August 2001 and held under custody for 480 days until 17 December 2002. Her husband Mr. Jayatilaka was also arrested for the same reason on 4 September 2001 when he went to obtain bail for his wife. He was reportedly imprisoned for 690 days by the court order without being convicted officially for any offence. Their cases are still pending and no formal charge sheet or government analyst report on the case has ever been produced. It has been reported that it is uncertain when the case will be concluded. 

CASE DETAILS:

According to the information we have received, Mr. Jayatilaka had made a complaint to the Katugastota police station that his relative was selling “Kasippu [illicit local liquor]”. In retaliation against Mr. Jayatilaka, the relative reportedly threatened Mr. Jayatilaka and forced him to leave the house which he was renting. Due to this severe harassment by the relative, Mr. Jayatilaka moved from his house on 12 April 2001 without even taking his household goods to his new house.  

Meanwhile, the said relative of Mr. Jayatilaka allegedly made complaints against Mr. Jayatilaka to the Katugastota police station with a false accusation. Later on Mr. Jayatilaka went to the Katugastota police station to see the Officer-in-Charge (OIC) to make a further complaint about the unjust treatment received by his relative. Mr. Jayatilaka, however, could not see the OIC at that time since he was out of the police station and instead he talked with a female police officer who was on duty but refused to file Mr. Jayatilaka’s complaint. 

Mr. Jayatilaka then tried another time to file a complaint with the police and it was finally recorded at the Katugastota police station under the complaint number C382/1519/8/14. However, no action was taken by the police to investigate into his complaint. Later on, Mr. Jaytilaka submitted a written complaint to the police to ask immediate investigation into his relative’s illegal activities and a series of intimidation against him.  

On 14 August 2001, Mrs. Jayatilaka went to see her previous residence and she saw that her family’s household goods were all destroyed. She made a complaint about the destruction of her property and the case was called by the Magistrate’s Court of Kandy on 16 August 2001. Since the accused party was the victim’s relative, the court suggested the victim to discontinue the case and receive compensation from the accused. Mrs. Jayatilaka agreed with this suggestion, however, the accused relative has not paid compensation. 

On the night of 16 August 2001, about 25 gang members came to Mr. Jayatilaka and his wife’s house and allegedly threatened to kill him. Mr. Jayatilaka lodged a complaint about the attack to the Katugastota police station on the following day. On 18 August 2001, Mr. Jayatilaka and the gang were called to the police station and were questioned by an Inspector. 

Meanwhile, on 19 August 2001, when Mrs. Jayatilaka went to her sister’s house, several unidentified armed men who claimed themselves from police station in Kandy, came to her sister’s place and told her that they want to search the house. The armed men did not find anything illegal in the house and left without further investigation. 

Later on the same day at around 10:30 am, several police officers from Katugastota police station came to the house of Mrs. Jayatilaka’s sister and told her that they received information that a grenade was inside the house. Shortly after their arrival, they took Mrs. Jayatilaka into custody and brought her to the Katugastota police station. 

Mr. Jayatilaka went to the police station soon after he heard about his wife’s arrest and asked for bail for his wife, however, his application was refused by the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Mr. Ananda Lenawa. It has been alleged that the same DIG forcibly took a statement from Mrs. Jayatilaka by threatening her. Based on the statement taken by the DIG, Mrs. Jayatilaka was ordered to be imprisoned for 480 days from 20 August 2001 until 17 December 2002 by the Magistrate’s court, with charges of illegal possession of grenades under the Offensive Weapons Act. 

Subsequently, when Mr. Jayatilaka went to the Katugastota police station on 2 September 2001, he was also taken into custody by a police officer no. 17030 and produced immediately before the magistrate court for the illegal possession of hand grenade which is the same reason that his wife was arrested. He was released after being imprisoned for 690 days by the decree of the Magistrate’s Court.

Mr. Jayatilaka’s case (no. 7750) has been called 54 times at the Magistrate’s Court in Kandy since 2001 however no verdict came out to date. According to the Offensive Weapons Act, the person arrested for charges in respect of a hand grenade which is within the definition of an “offensive weapon” could obtain bail only from the Court of Appeal in Colombo. However, because of their poor financial status and lack of knowledge about legal procedure, they have not been received any legal assistance to appeal this case. The arrest of the victims for the fabricated charges has also jeopardised the livelihoods of Mr. Jayatilaka’s children who had their education interrupted while their parents were imprisoned. Consequently, the family suffered huge economical and psychological damage by the whole incident. 

The AHRC strongly condemns that the arrest of Mr. and Mrs. Jayatilaka for the alleged fabricated charge made by the police. We also condemn the reluctance of the police authorities in conducting proper investigation into this case since it has allegedly caused huge delay in the court proceedings. The case is not concluded to the present although almost six years have been passed since the victims were arrested in 2001.  

We therefore demand the Sri Lankan authorities to take all appropriate actions to ensure thorough investigation into the case of the alleged fabricated accusation, arbitrary arrest and detention and long delay in justice. We also demand the Sri Lankan authority to settle the court case of the victims in fair manner without further delay. Moreover, Sri Lankan authority should ensure the prosecution of the all officials responsible for the fabricated accusation of the victims and the delay in bringing justice for the victims immediately. 

We are afraid that without proper investigation and appropriate prosecution against all the officials responsible for the fabricated accusation of the victims and the delay in conveying justice for this case, state impunity would further be exacerbated and negligence of police authority for fulfilling their obligation as law enforcement officials would never be ceased in the country. 

We therefore urge the Sri Lankan authority to take all necessary actions to ensure immediate settlement of the case of Mr. and Mrs. Jayatilaka, and bring the alleged perpetrators before justice as accountable to the fabricated accusation against the victims. We also demand the Sri Lankan authority to provide appropriate compensations to the victims so that they would resume the life they were enjoying before they were falsely accused. 

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the relevant authorities listed below and urge them to take an immediate action into the alleged fabricated accusation of the victims and provide legal remedies to the victim without further delay. 

To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER