The Colombo High Court today (18) ordered the Attorney General to take up on October 30 the case filed against retired Brigadier Shammi Kumararatne, former Commanding Officer of the Giritale Army Camp, and nine members of the Army Intelligence Unit over the abduction and disappearance of journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda.
The former Chief Justice had appointed a three-member bench comprising High Court Judges Namal Balalle, Mahesh Weeraman, and Sujeewa Nissanka to hear the case. However, when the case was called today before Judges Mahesh Weeraman and Sujeewa Nissanka, the bench informed that the hearing could not proceed because one position on the three-member bench remained vacant. They further stated that the Chief Justice would appoint a judge to fill the vacancy.
Accordingly, the bench ordered the case to be taken up again on October 30.
Nine members of the Army Intelligence Unit, including Brigadier Kumararatne, have been named as defendants in this case and are currently out on bail.
The Attorney General filed the case against the defendants under the Penal Code during the previous Yahapalana government, accusing them of abducting and murdering journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda around January 25, 2010. The indictment also alleged that the defendants intended to secretly imprison him in locations including Giritale, Habarana, and Kottawa.
