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Police to probe Shani’s FR allegations only if court orders

24 Feb 2022

  • Allegations pertain to Easter attacks and intelligence cover-up
BY Buddhika Samaraweera The Police informed that an investigation into the allegations made in the fundamental rights (FR) petition filed in the Supreme Court (SC) by former Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Director Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Shani Abeysekara can only be carried out if the court issues an order to that effect. Speaking to The Morning, Police Media Spokesman Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) and Attorney-at-Law Nihal Thalduwa said: “Abeysekara has submitted this FR petition to the court. Therefore, the Police are not able to investigate a matter submitted to the court. If the court orders an inquiry into the matter, an investigation can be carried out.” He further said that if Abeysekara had made any reference to the facts mentioned in the relevant petition to the Police and other investigating agencies, the allegations could have been investigated.  However, he noted that the facts presented by Abeysekara to the court have been publicised by the media so far, and added that the Police is therefore not in a position to commence a probe. Abeysekara, filing this FR petition with the SC, had requested that an interim order restraining the Police from arresting and/or otherwise detaining him be issued. The petition had alleged the involvement of intelligence services including the State Intelligence Service (SIS) and the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) in the Easter Sunday terror attacks of 21 April 2019. Through the FR submitted, he had brought to light previously unknown information about possible links that the SIS and the DMI had with the National Thowheeth Jama’ath (NTJ) and its leader and suicide bomber Mohamed Cassim Mohamed Zahran alias Zahran Hashim. According to the petition, Abeysekara has alleged that the SIS and the DMI had covered up the attack on the Vavunathivu Police post in 2018, in order to mislead the CID investigations.  “The petitioner states that the DMI and the SIS are suspected to have conspired to plant the motorcycle jacket in a school bag to mislead the CID investigations on the murder of two police officers in order to prevent them from discovering the real assailants involved in the murder,” the petition stated. Abeysekara had also revealed that the DMI had intentionally withheld knowledge about one of the Easter Sunday attacks suicide bombers – Abdul Lathif Jameel Mohamed – from the CID.  “Military officers attached to the DMI had prior knowledge of Jameel’s identity, his role in the NTJ, and his whereabouts, but for reasons yet unknown, they have decided not to share this information with the CID to help apprehend Zahran and dismantle the NTJ,” the petition has alleged. The petition has also revealed that contact between an intelligence officer and Zahran had been uncovered by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigations, but that the interrogation of the said intelligence officer was prevented by the DMI. The petitioner has also stated that the CID had begun interrogating the said individual who had refused to give any information about his connection to Zahran or to the NTJ. Abeysekara, in the petition, has further alleged that thereafter, the Defence Ministry, through then DMI Director Brig. Chula Kodithuwakku, had prevented the CID from detaining the said individual, asserting that the activities of the said individual were classified for national security reasons as his activities were a part of a secret military intelligence operation. Further, according to the petition, SIS Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police Sampath Liyanage had allegedly attempted to stop the CID from interrogating SIS officer Senior Inspector of Police Bandara, who allegedly had connections to NTJ member Matale Zahran alias “Podi Zahran”.


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