5th Column

My dear Ranjan,

I thought I must write to you because a few weeks ago there was a lot of talk about you being given a presidential pardon and being released from jail on Independence Day. Nothing came out of it. That means that you remain behind bars for the foreseeable future and you are not ‘independent’ at all.

I am not sure whether you are happy on unhappy about not being pardoned. We remember that, when you were sent to prison, you were quite defiant about it and said that, as a matter of principle, you will never seek a pardon but serve your 4-year sentence in full as the court ordered you to.

Even before matters went that far and you were still a free man, you were quite adamant, repeatedly confirming your controversial statements about our judiciary. You were asked several times whether you wanted to withdraw your offending statements but you said you would rather go to prison instead.

That is exactly what happened. Honestly, Ranjan, it is quite silly of you to do what you did because you were a parliamentarian then. You could have said whatever you wanted to say in Parliament – or anything worse than that, judging by the language used there now – and got away with it scot-free.

It is also worthwhile noting that the current predicament you find yourself in is just one of the many problems that you are faced with. While you have been found guilty of contempt of court already, you also have another case where you are charged with the same offence and that case is still being heard.

Then, apart from all that, there are all those tape recordings of telephone conversations you had with many people in authority at that time. We too heard some of them when they were leaked. Some of those conversations are very incriminating. Someday, there could be consequences for that too.

With the outcomes of all these matters yet to be determined, you must surely wonder, Ranjan, whether asking for a pardon is worthwhile. After all, Gota maama can grant you a pardon and release you now only for you to be sent to jail again for one of all those other offences you are being charged with!

Even though Independence Day has come and gone Gota maama can still pardon you on any day. In fact, if he was smart, he would have done so. If he pardons you, the chaps in your ‘telephone’ party can’t make a big fuss about young Duminda being pardoned, though his conviction was for murder!

Speaking of the ‘telephone’ party, your friend, young Harin has said that he is willing to resign his seat in Parliament if you are pardoned. Because he is on the National List, you could replace him, just like Ketagoda resigned to make way for Basil maama’s return. That is extremely kind of Harin.

Again, if Gota maama was smart, he should pardon you. If young Harin keeps his promise, Gota maama will be killing two birds with one stone. He can take all the credit for releasing you. At the same time, he will be getting rid of the pesky Harin from Parliament and replacing him with you!

So, Harin’s idea of resigning for your sake, even if it comes to pass, doesn’t seem like the best of strategies for the ‘telephone’ party. Being behind bars, I am not sure whether you are keeping abreast of what is going on in the party, Ranjan, but strategy and tactics doesn’t seem to be its strongpoint.

There is Sajith, who doesn’t seem to doing much or saying much these days, even while Paradise is in crisis. I may be mistaken but he gives the impression that he believes his surname will win him the top job in the land, just like it did for the ‘B’s and ‘R’s. That is why he keeps playing the ‘piano’ tune.

Then we also see ‘Pa Cha’ emerging from the shadows recently, submitting his own proposals for economic reform through his so-called ‘43rd Brigade’. That maybe a novel concept but surely why try to sell them as your own when you have a party? Shouldn’t he be sending them to his party first?

That is why many say that ‘Pa Cha’ is playing a game on his own and that he is an ambitious man. There is nothing wrong with that, of course, but like you, he too might find himself on the wrong side of the law if that case about a car accident takes a turn for the worse, so he needs to be careful.

As you can see, Ranjan, although everyone says Paradise is in trouble, those opposing the rulers don’t seem to have got their act together. Had you been ‘free’, you might have made a difference, but even then, you must know what to say and even more importantly, what not to say, when you speak!

Yours truly,

Punchi Putha

PS: As you know, Ranjan, the wheels of justice suddenly turn faster in Paradise when there are human rights inquiries in Geneva, leading to lawyers who were detained for years being suddenly released on bail. So, who knows, there is a chance that you may also receive a pardon from Gota maama shortly!