189th Day of the Main Easter Attack Trial – HC (TAB) 2972/21
Date: 19th May 2026|
Venue: Special Permanent Three-Judge High Court (Trial-at-Bar), 2nd Floor, MCC Building, Adhikarana Mawatha, Colombo 12.
Except 17th accused, who had passed away, the rest of the accused were present before Court. The voir dire inquiry related to the 18th accused continued, and Prosecution Witnesses Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 from the additional witness list were present before Court to give evidence.
Prosecution Witness No. 1, the Officer-in-Charge of the TID, Superintendent of Police, Nimal Perera, who had made Orders to produce the 18th accused before the chambers of ASP on 14th June 2021 and 17th June 2021 testified that Gazette No.2230/15/2021 issued on 4th June 2021 enabled PTA detainees to be detained at the Butani Capital Building, and with the leave of the Court the said Gazette was marked as R02. He further testified that on 4th June 2021 several PTA detainees, including the 18th accused were transferred from the Nawa Mahalekam Building to the Butani Capital Building.
Prosecution Witness No. 1 testified that he had been informed that 18th accused wished to meet a senior officer and that, on 10th June 2021 he sent a letter to the Director of the Criminal Investigation Department informing him that the 18th accused wished to make a statement before a senior officer. He further testified that on 12th June 2021 ASP, Upul Lasantha Rathnayake informed him that the 18th accused wished to make a statement before him and requested that the 18th accused be produce before his chamber together with a translator. Accordingly, the Prosecution Witness No. 1 testified that he made Orders to produce the 18th accused on 14th June 2021 and 17th June 2021. The witness was cross-examined by Counsel Mr. Kaneel Maddumage AAL appearing for the 18th accused, and by 4th, and 9th accused. During the cross-examination, it was suggested to the Witness that the 18th accused had not been transferred on 5th June 2021 from the Nawa Mahalekam Building to the Butani Building, that the Witness was giving false evidence before the Court, that the Witness was testifying regarding events that had never occurred, and that he had never made Orders to produce the 18th accused before the ASP. During the re-examination, the Witness clarified that the 18th accused had been legally detained at the Butani Capital Building and that the transfer had been lawful.
Thereafter, the Prosecution Witness No. 2, Police Inspector Dulitha Chamod Hansaka, gave evidence-in-chief and testified that on 29th April 2021 he had taken the 18th accused from Agunakolapalassa Prison and produced him at the Butani Capital Building on the same day. He further testified that on 17th June 2021 he prodced the 18th accused before a Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) Dr. M.R.A.Rahuman with the Medico-Legal Examination Form (MLEF) No. 1/2021. The relevant MLEF which had already been marked as P802, was shown to him, and he testified that after producing the accused before the JMO, the accused was brought to the ASP’s office at around 11.30 a.m. He further testified that he again produced the 18th accused before JMO Dr. S.N.N Perera again with MLEF No. 2/2021, which was marked as R03. The witness was cross-examined by Counsel Mr. Kaneel Maddumage AAL appearing for the 18th accused, and by the 4th and 9th accused. During the cross examination it was suggested that he had never brought the 18th accused before the JMO again on 17th June 2021 and had never produced the 18th accused before the ASP on the same day.
The Witness No. 6 Police Surgeon 77145 Pushpakumara from the additional witness list, also gave evidence-in-chief and testified that he had brought the 18th accused to the official chamber of the ASP on 14th June 2021 around 11.15 a.m. and was cross-examined by Counsel Mr. Kaneel Maddumage AAL appearing for the 18th accused.
The Court ordered Summons to be issued on Prosecution Witness No. 3,8,9,10 and 12 and directed that Prosecution Witness No. 4 and 5 from the additional Witness list appear before Court on the following day. The Court further informed that the Superintendent of the Colombo Remand Prison and the Superintendent of Magazine Prison have informed the Court that providing hot water to the accused for drinking purposes within the Court premises posed a danger to the accused.
The matter was fixed to be called again on 20th May 2026 at 10.00 a.m. for further trial.
