Pre-hearing flap over National List challenge in Supreme Court
Two 14As were in circulation claims lawyer
Mr. Nagananda Kodituwakku, the lawyer for former Minister Dew Gunasekera who challenging the appointment of National List MPs to the sitting Parliament, has in papers filed on Friday in the Supreme Court, claimed that there have been two Bills "concerning the 14th Amendment to the Constitution in circulation in Parliament, where in one Bill supported by the (then) Prime Minister there was no such provision permitting defeated candidates to enter Parliament through the National list."
He has filed a copy of the other Bill which Prime Minister Premadasa supported in the the parliamentary debate of May 4, 1988, with these papers.
Kodituwakku has said that further to the Fundamental Rights action filed on his client’s behalf, he has found the Bill for the 14th Amendment submitted to the SC for special determination by President J.R. Jayewardene "was significantly different" from the Bill referred to the House by Premadasa.
His attempts to get a certified copy of the SCs determination on 14A from the court registry had failed. The Registrar had referred this request to Justice Eva Wanasundera who had ruled:
"….Communications between the President and the Chief Justice and the Observations of the Court, which are communicated to the President and to the Speaker need not be disclosed to Mr. Kodiuwakku. The request contained in the motion is therefore refused…"
Kodituwakku has said that as a public interest litigation activist, he considers himself as representing the people of Sri Lanka whose sovereign rights are being blatantly abused by the Executive and the Legislature.
"I believe that the Judiciary, being the organ of the exercise of the people’s judicial power, purely on trust, is under a duty to uphold and protect the people’s judicial power and respect the people’s right to all relevant information demonstrating the impartiality of the Judiciary," he has said.
He has asked the Chief Justice to intervene in this matter and enable him to obtain a certified copy of the record (SC/SD/02/1998) which he says is of paramount importance fundamental rights matter fixed for support on Sept. 16.
