News
Shashi Weerawansa case: Action against ex-passport chiefs
The Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court has recommended that the Public Administration Ministry Secretary initiate an inquiry and take “appropriate action” against officials involved in helping former Minister Wimal Weerawansa’s wife Shashi Weerawansa to obtain a diplomatic passport by submitting a forged birth certificate and other documents.
Shashi Weerawansa was sentenced to two years’ rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 100,000 on Friday after was found guilty of committing a crime under the Immigrants & Emigrants Act. Magistrate Buddhika Sri Ragala also ordered that she be sentenced to a further six months’ simple imprisonment if she failed to pay the fine.
In his judgement, the magistrate said it had become clear during the course of the trial that some government officials had abused their powers to aid and abet Ms. Weerawansa to obtain a diplomatic passport using forged documents. As such, the court has recommended that the Public Administration Ministry Secretary launch an inquiry and take appropriate action against such officials.
The court in particular noted the conduct of the then Controller General of Immigration and Emigration Jagath P. Wijeweera and the then Commissioner General of the Department of Registration of Persons Chulananda Perera. Giving evidence during the trial, both officials testified that then Minister Wimal Weerawansa had phoned them and informed that his wife was coming to obtain a diplomatic passport and to assist her.
Accordingly, Ms. Weerawansa had obtained the diplomatic passport through the one-day service.
Ms. Weerawansa already had a normal passport in her possession. According to this passport, she was born in 1967. However, the diplomatic passport she obtained stated that she was born in 1971. Her children’s birth certificates, meanwhile, state that she had been born in 1977. All this showed that the accused had intentionally submitted forged documents to obtain the diplomatic passport, Senior Deputy Solicitor General Dileepa Peiris PC, who appeared for the Attorney General told court.
Shavendra Fernando PC, who appeared for Ms. Weerawansa, said his client would appeal against the court’s decision and asked that she be released on bail pending the appeal. The court said the appeal for bail would be taken up on May 30.
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