The Hon. R.M. Ranjith Madduma Bandara
Hon. R.M. Ranjith Madduma Bandara questioned the Government’s failure to identify or arrest those alleged to be responsible for the Easter Sunday attacks, arguing that it had used such allegations electorally but had taken no action after 158 days in power. He called for justice for Catholics and asked who was directing the current process, referring to the President, the security adviser, and Ananda Wijepala. He also raised concerns over a dispute between the National Police Commission, the President, and the Acting IGP, stressing that the Commission was established to ensure police independence and warning against politicisation or executive interference.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 First say who the mastermind is. Say it. Say it. Your security adviser also does not know.
¶ 02 You claimed these things; those officers claimed them. If so, why has no one been arrested? You named names and won votes. Now you hold power; not us. We have not seen you even take one person into custody over these. In Good Governance, around 700 were arrested. Who is directing now—Ananda Wijepala? The President? We do not know. People are watching; please act. You have been in power for 158 days; still only talk, no action. We call for justice for Catholics.
¶ 03 Next, about the Police: there is a clash between the National Police Commission, the President, and the IGP. Why was the National Police Commission appointed? To protect police independence and prevent politicisation. Independent Commissions must be independent, but are now under the President. Parliament also bears responsibility via the Constitutional Council. The President complains he cannot work due to NPC blocking transfers. The Acting IGP says the NPC has “gone astray”. If the NPC functions to ensure police independence, how can the Acting IGP say that?
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Friday, 28 February 2025 ·No. 1741927369029372 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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/lk/speeches/26247
Cite as: The Hon. R.M. Ranjith Madduma Bandara. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 28 February 2025. No. 1741927369029372. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/26247