Deputy Solicitor General Fosley Razik informed the Supreme Court yesterday that the new government has decided to review a contested gazette notification issued by the Wildlife Ministry, which directed the release of 168 acres of the Wilpattu Vedithalathivu Reserve Forest for the establishment of a shrimp farm.
The petition challenging this notification was considered before a Supreme Court bench consisting of Justices S. Thurairajah, Dilip Nawaz, and Janak de Silva. It was filed by the Wildlife Protection Association, the Centre for Environmental Justice, and other parties, with former Wildlife Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi and others named as respondents.
The court had previously issued an interim injunction preventing the implementation of the gazette notification. Following Deputy Solicitor General Fosley Razik’s statement that the government intended to review the notification, the Supreme Court extended the injunction until July 29 of next year.
In light of these developments, the Deputy Solicitor General requested the bench to set a date for further proceedings. Consequently, the court scheduled the petition for a hearing on June 29 next year.
