Colombo Additional Magistrate T. Prabhakaran rejected a request made by the Colombo Fort Police to issue an order to halt a protest rally planned to be held in Colombo Fort April 24 by Inter University Students Federation ” Anthare”.
The Police told the court that a protest rally to be held in parallel to the protest against the government at the Galle Face Green is likely to cause damage to state property and an order should be issued to stop it.
The magistrate said that he could not issue any orders to prevent a protest from taking place in the future and directed the police to use their police powers if the protesters were engaged in a manner that would harass the public or damage state property.
The Fort Police informed the court that they had received intelligence that the respondents, accompanied by about a thousand people, were to arrive at the Galle Face protest venue from near the Colombo Fort Railway Station and spend the night there.
The Fort Police saying intelligence had revealed that there was a risk of protesters forcibly entering leading government institutions and official residences in the area and requested the court to issue this order to prevent it.