5th Column

Gnanasara ‘hamuduruwaney’,

I thought of writing to you when I heard that you are likely to be pardoned and released by Aiyo Sirisena next week, when the country celebrates its next Independence Day. You must be relieved, ‘hamuduruwaney’ to hear that you can wear the saffron robe again, instead of the prison ‘jumper’.

You must be feeling like you have won a lottery because your sentence was to run for 6 years but you are now walking away scot-free after just over 6 months. Of course, even during those 6 months you did what most VIPs in prison do: say you are sick and spend your time in a hospital.

For someone who claims to be a ‘hamuduruwo’, you have an impressive track record. First you were sentenced to 6 months of rigorous imprisonment for threatening the wife of a journalist in court. Now, that did not deter you, nor did you show any signs of remorse for that offence, did you?

You then went on to abuse the judges who sentenced you for that, attracting a contempt of court charge. You were found guilty of that too. You then appealed to the highest courts in the land, all of which rejected your appeals, saying that the dignity and honour of the judiciary had to be upheld.

This must have come as a surprise to you because during Mahinda maama’s time you were used to walking around making racially inflammatory statements that even led to rioting in Beruwala and Aluthgama that left several people dead, hundreds injured and many properties damaged.

Still, you suffered no consequences. Not only did the then authorities look the other way, they hailed you as a hero who championed the cause of the majority community at the expense of other communities. So, the verdicts that suddenly sent you to jail must have come as quite a shock to you.

All this happened during Aiyo Sirisena’s reign. At that time, Aiyo Sirisena was content to play by the rules and let the judiciary do its work. However, at some point, he decided that he was elected not to implement ‘yahapaalanaya’ but only ‘maithri paalanaya’. That is when he lost his marbles.

So, when Aiyo Sirisena began acting strangely, ignoring the Constitution and ruling the country by issuing gazette notifications at midnight, sacking Prime Ministers and appointing new ones, people went to the courts seeking redress because that was the only option left to them to put things right.

The courts did what was right, telling Aiyo Sirisena that although he was the boss, there were things he couldn’t do. He couldn’t hire and fire Prime Ministers and he couldn’t dissolve Parliament just because he wanted to. Thereafter, Aiyo Sirisena must have thought he should teach the courts a lesson.

Remember, when the Court of Appeal suspended Mahinda maama, Aiyo Sirisena couldn’t hide his anger. He said that ‘the monk of a village temple had done what the mahanayaka monks should do’. Well, now it seems as if the ‘abiththaya’ (student monk) has done what the mahanayakas should do!

That is why you are such a lucky man, Gnanasara ‘hamuduruwaney’. Aiyo Sirisena wants to show the courts who the real boss is. So, even though all the courts in the land from the lowest to the highest found you guilty on many counts, by trying to release you, he is telling them to go fly a kite!

Then, Aiyo Sirisena tells the Philippines President that his way of killing drug dealers is exemplary and that he wants to do so in Paradise too. Why he wants to enforce the law to the hilt on some issues and yet release convicts like you doesn’t make sense, but Aiyo Sirisena never made sense, did he?

If he was really looking for someone to pardon, he could have pardoned poor Lalith. That chap is suffering in jail only because he was Mahinda maama’s secretary, but then, releasing Lalith won’t make Aiyo Sirisena a hero in the eyes of all those who follow you and claim to be patriots, would it?

I was surprised to see the chap in charge of Buddha Sasana, old Jayawickrema, also endorsing the appeal to release you. I thought that he, and the party he represents, stood for what is right, but they too seem to be looking at winning votes instead. Or, is it that the chilli powder has affected his thinking?

Anyway, you are in luck’s way. It appears as if you will be released to a great hero’s welcome and hailed as the saviour of the majority race. Then, you will be free to roam the streets of paradise and spread your doctrine of hatred once again. What can we say, except ‘theruwan saranai’ to our nation!

Yours truly,

Punchi Putha

PS: We are told that this hurry to pardon you comes because the Mahanayaka priests have appealed to Aiyo Sirisena to release you. Just imagine, all the murderers, rapists and drug dealers must be now making a beeline to the Mahanayaka priests to get their names on the list – and Duminda may be next!