IGP put on notice over CID’S failure to arrest State Minister Gamage

Premier Legal Consultants, Counsel for civil society activist Oshala Herath, has informed IGP C. D. Wickremaratne that legal action would be initiated against him, too, unless W.I.P. Shashikala, OIC of the Human Trafficking and Smuggling Unit of the CID was directed to arrest State Minister Diana Gamage for committing offenses under Sections 45(1) (a) and 45(1) (c) of the Immigration and Emigration Act.

Rienzie Arsecularatne, PC, has taken this up with the IGP, following the inordinate delay on the part of the CID officer in taking the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) National List MP into custody over the disclosures made in the Colombo Magistrate’s Court, pertaining to a complaint Herath lodged with the Human Trafficking and Smuggling Unit of the CID, on Nov, 02, 2020.

Pointing out that the Human Trafficking and Smuggling Unit of the CID has filed a report in the Magistrate Court, on March 09, 2021, the Counsel brought to the IGP’s attention that the lawmaker had obtained two Sri Lankan passports, bearing numbers N 5091386 and OL 5654794 (official passport) while being a British citizen.

The lawyer said that the CID continued to shirk its duties even after the Magistrate, on April 24, 2023, declared that on the basis of material furnished by the Immigration and Emigration Department, the investigating officers could make the arrest under Section 32(1) of Code of Criminal Procedure Act No 15 of 1979. The Magistrate has also stressed that investigating officers had no discretion in that regard, the lawyers pointed out to the IGP.

MP Gamage has switched her allegiance to President Ranil Wickremesinghe having entered parliament with the blessings of SJB leader Sajith Premadasa.

The IGP has been told that conferring of wrongful or unlawful benefit, favour or advantage on the lawmaker constituted the offense of corruption in terms of Section 70 of the Bribery Act (SF)