Supreme Court to hear Ranjan's contempt of court case on June 12

The contempt of court case filed against Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake will be taken up for hearing on June 12 by the Supreme Court.

Mr. Ramanayake has been accused of making a defamatory remark against the judiciary during a television  programme while commenting on an ongoing judicial proceeding pertaining to the fundamental rights petition that was filed against the President's gazette to dissolve Parliament.

The Deputy Minister is alleged to have said that three members in the five-member judge bench that was hearing the case would favour the petitioners. 

However, Presidents Counsel Faiz Mustapha representing the accused had told court that he would file objections on the charges levelled against his client. He had also said that he expresses regret if his client had made remarks that hurt the judiciary.

The Attorney General on a previous occasion had argued that the remarks made by the defendant was clearly in violation of Section 105 of the constitution.