People’s Campaign for Justice hits out :

CJ defied sc ruling, politicized bench

* Ignored binding ruling of Justice Mark Fernando

* A pawn in the hands of NGOs

Chaminda Perera

Patriotic National Movement president and prominent writer Dr Gunadasa Amarasekera said Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake has played a political role in deciding to sit in judgment over the Divi Neguma Bill.

He said this was in defiance of a ruling by Justice Mark Fernando that she should not be a part of Benches hearing political cases on devolution.

Dr. Amarasekera said the Chief Justice had made political comments on the subject of devolution of power.

The Jathika Hela Urumaya filed two cases in the Supreme Court challenging her appointment as a Supreme Court Judge as she had made political comments on the subject of devolution of power.

Dr. Amarasekera said Justice Fernando while dismissing these cases against her appointment to the Bench, had stressed that she should not hear cases of that nature in the future.

He said Justice Fernando made a special note defining her judicial role, and the type of cases she can hear.

Speaking at a seminar on Impeachment and People’s Sovereignty, organised by the People’s

Campaign for Justice at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute on Wednesday, Dr Amarasekera said the government should unravel the massive conspiracy associated with the conduct of the Chief Justice who has allowed herself to be a pawn in the hands of the NGO mafia and the LTTE proxies.

"Forces who were conspiring against the country during the height of the war on terrorism are behind the Chief Justice," he said.

Dr Amarasekera said the political campaign based on the impeachment motion against the Chief Justice is the latest episode of their conspiracy. He said these conspirators have used lawyers to achieve their ulterior motives.

"The people should understand that the political campaign based on the impeachment motion is part of a conspiracy which is being hatched by the NGO mafia in connivance with the LTTE proxies to create confusion and discord in the country." He said LTTE proxies and NGOs used various tactics and persons to achieve what Prabahakaran could not.

"They are trying to create discord within the country by inciting people for an Arab Spring style uprising to force the government out of office which is to the liking of Western countries," Dr Amarasekera said. BASL vice president Anoma Gunathilake scoffed at the accusations by certain quarters that complainants themselves are investigating the impeachment charges against the Chief Justice.

She said the impeachment motion was signed by a group of parliamentarians and these signatories have not been appointed to the Parliamentary Select Committee investigating into the impeachment charges.

Gunathilake said the people have been left with no option other than to protect the present government to keep the country and the nation intact.