The Supreme Court today issued an interim order preventing Deshabandu Tennakoon from performing duties and functioning in the position of the Inspector General of Police (IGP).
The Supreme Court issued this order after granting leave to proceed with the nine petitions, filed by several parties including Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, challenging the decision to appoint Tennakoon as the IGP.
The petitioners had sought an interim order restraining Deshabandu Tennakoon from discharging the duties and functioning in the office of IGP.
The fundamental rights (FR) petitions filed challenging the appointment of Deshabandu Tennakoon as IGP were taken up once again today (24).
The Supreme Court on July 18 concluded considering the FR petitions filed challenging the appointment of Tennakoon as the IGP.
Accordingly, the court had then announced that the decision as to whether or not the petitions will be taken up for hearing will be delivered today (24).
The court was also expected to announce as to whether an interim order will be issued preventing Deshabandu Tennakoon from functioning as the IGP.
A three-member bench had taken up for consideration on several previous occasions, the nine petitions put forward by several parties including the Archbishop of Colombo Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, Prof. Savitri Gunasekara, former MP Hirunika Premachandra and several others.
The petitioners allege that Tennakoon had neglected his duties during his tenure as the Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police (SDIG) of the Western Province when the 2019 Easter attacks happened, and when a pre-mediated attack was launched on the ‘GotaGoGama’ protest site at the Galle Face Green where several protesters were brutally assaulted.
-Ada Derena
