News
Police case for arrest warrant against UNP MP turned down
View(s):Member of Parliament Sujeewa Senasinghe was noticed to appear in court after Homagama Magistrate Y. R. B. Nelundeniya turned down a plea by the Police to issue an arrest warrant on him, though the politician had not appeared in court on a previous occasion as well on a violation of election laws.
The Magistrate ordered the MP to be present in court on September 30.
On Wednesday, Homagama police told court that Mr. Senasinghe did not appear in court on an earlier occasion while on the first occasion an attempt by the police to serve notice at the MP’s residence failed as inmates there did not accept the notice.
Mr. Senasinghe has been charged with violating election laws and obstructing a police officer during the Parliamentary election campaign.
The Magistrate released the second suspect on a personal bail of Rs. 200,000 and discharged the other three suspects.
He also ordered that the vehicle involved in the incident be handed over to the Athurugiriya police.
Mr. Senasinghe who was the Deputy Minister of Justice at the time of the incident is alleged to have violated election laws by displaying cut-outs and holding a night time meeting using loudspeakers thereby causing a public nuisance.
The incident had taken place at Habarakada in Homagama when a police sergeant had asked Mr. Senasinghe to desist from holding the political meeting as it was a public nuisance.
The Police Sergeant attached to the Athurugiriya police complained he had been threatened by the Deputy Justice Minister when he intervened to stop the meeting. Mr. Senasinghe claimed that he was the first to lodge a complaint with the Senior Superintendent of Police in the area that a policeman, allegedly under the influence of liquor, was obstructing one of their meetings.