Police finally crack the whip on errant ASP

An Assistant Superintendent of Police has been charge-sheeted for verbally abusing a serving Senior Deputy Inspector General in public, for the first time in the history of the Department, more than four years after the incident.

According to the charge-sheet, the incident had taken place on the night of September 10, 2002 when ASP Ranmal Kodituwakku , driving a white car bearing the registration No. 18-4110 in the company of a woman, stopped in front of the official bungalow of Senior DIG H.M.G.B. Kotakadeniya at Keppitipola Mawatha, in Colombo and shouted obscenities at Mr. Kotakadeniya for few minutes, but had driven away before Mr. Kotakadeniya got to his gate.

The Sunday Times learns that the charge sheet against Mr. Kodituwakku has now been sent to the National Police Commission by IGP Victor Perera.

Mr. Kodituwakku, the only son of former IGP Lucky Kodituwakku, nearly got away with this alleged incident as well as several other acts of alleged indiscipline, including an assault on a senior mercantile executive on a main road after a traffic altercation. Due to apparent police inaction over these incidents some of those victims filed fundamental rights violation cases against him.
Mr. Kotakadeniya who went into retirement shortly after the alleged verbal abuse incident, citing step-motherly treatment in promotions, became an Advisor to the Defence Ministry soon after President Mahinda Rajapaksa assumed office.

According to an official document submitted to the Government in this regard, the investigation had run through a virtual obstacle course in the Police Department. At one point the entire investigation file had been missing. When a fresh probe was ordered, one DIG had reportedly concluded that there was no evidence to proceed with the case, despite two police constables on duty at two different sentry points in this high security zone at the time identifying the vehicle and Mr. Kodituwakku in this connection.

Mr. Kodituwakku was not available for comment at the time of going to press.