De Facto CJ Hears And Decides On Appropriation Bill In Secret Before CPA Petition

November 6, 2013 

President Mahinda Rajapaksa had referred his Government’s Appropriation Bill for 2014 to the Supreme Court for legal opinion in complete secrecy, disallowing interested parties from filing submissions and legal arguments on the contents of the bill, Colombo Telegraph learns.

After the furore over the Appropriation Bill for 2013 was challenged in the Supreme Court by the Centre for Policy Alternatives and the Court found in favour of the petitioner and ruled sections of the bill were unconstitutional, the President has sent this year’s bill for referral to the Mohan Peiris Supreme Court for opinion.

The fact that the matter had been referred to the Supreme Court and deemed constitutional by a five judge divisional bench only came to light when the CPA petition against the 2014 bill came up before Court on Monday (4).

De Facto Chief Justice Mohan Pieris told the Petitioner that the same points raised by the petitioner had been dealt with in the referral, and five judges had ruled the bill was constitutionally sound. He indicated there would be no different decision that would emerge from the bench comprising himself, and Justices K Sripavan and Sathya Hettige, he said, although permitting the Counsel for the petitioner to make submissions on the petition.

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