CA varies order in Cricket Board case:

Sports Ministry allowed to call for movable property

BY WASANTHA Ramanayake

THE Court of Appeal yesterday varied the interim order issued against the Sports Minister and the Ministry Secretary by allowing the Secretary of Ministry to order Sri Lanka Cricket to hand over its movable property to the Interim Committee in terms of the Section 34 (4) of the Sports Law.

Justice K. Sripavan Judge of the Court of Appeal varied the order after hearing the submissions made by Solicitor General Chitranjan R. de Silva PC who urged court to vacate the order earlier issued by it restraining the Sports Minister and the Ministry's Secretary from making any further orders with regard to the registration of the Sri Lanka Cricket, until April 12.

The SG submitted that the country's cricket had come to a grinding halt since officials of Sri Lanka Cricket had removed documents and closed down the Cricket Headquarters at Maitland Crescent.

He submitted that the Interim Committee was not in a position to administer the sport since they did not have access to vital documents, were unable to operate bank accounts and also to communicate with the management of the Sri Lankan team currently in New Zealand with regard to day to day issues.

At the outset counsel Anuruddha Perera for the petitioners, office- bearers of the Sri Lanka Cricket raised objections to the matter being taken up on the basis that the petitioners had not received notice and moved the matter to be put off for April, 6.

The SG questioned as to whether the petitioners obtained the stay orders against respondents with notice to them and submitted that the respondents should have the right to vacate the stay order which had been obtained ex-parte without notice to the petitioners.

The SG submitted that interim committees had been appointed on several occasions earlier and on all such occasions the interim committees were allowed to function at the Cricket headquarters. He submitted that this was the only instance where the interim committee was debarred from entering the facility.

He submitted to court that if the stay order was not vacated, an irreparable loss and damage would be caused to the country's Cricket as a whole. He submitted that several international matches to be played shortly would also be affected if the court order was not vacated.

The petitioners stated in their writ application to the Court of Appeal that they entertained reasonable fears that the respondents the Sports Minister and the Ministry's Secretary would take further steps to cancel the registration and to dissolve the Sri Lanka Cricket.

They stated that the suspension dated March 24 was bad in law since the petitioners had not been afforded an opportunity to answer charges in terms of the Sports Law. The petitioners, seven office-bearers of the Sri Lanka Cricket including Thilanga Sumathipala cited the Sports Minister and Ministry's Secretary as the respondents.

SG C.R. de Silva PC with state counsel N. Pulle appeared for the respondents.

The case would be recalled on April 11.