Court of Appeal Delays Hearing on Gotabaya Rajapaksa's Petition to Block Terrorism Act Arrest

The Court of Appeal has postponed further consideration of a writ petition submitted by former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in which he seeks a court order to prevent his arrest and detention under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) in relation to ongoing investigations into the Easter Sunday attacks.

Petition Seeks Protection from PTA Detention

The writ petition filed by the former head of state asks the court to intervene and block any potential arrest or detention under the PTA, a controversial piece of legislation that grants authorities broad powers to detain individuals connected to terrorism-related investigations.

The Easter Sunday attacks of April 2019 claimed the lives of over 260 people when coordinated suicide bombings targeted churches and luxury hotels across Sri Lanka, in one of the deadliest terrorist incidents in the country's history. Investigations into the failures of intelligence services and state officials surrounding the attacks have continued in the years since.

Hearing Deferred by Court

The Court of Appeal elected to defer the matter without proceeding to substantive consideration at yesterday's session, pushing the case further along the judicial calendar. The postponement means that Rajapaksa's legal bid to secure protection from a PTA-related arrest remains unresolved for the time being.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled Sri Lanka in July 2022 amid mass public protests over the country's devastating economic crisis before eventually returning, has faced mounting scrutiny over the handling of pre-attack intelligence warnings during his tenure as Defence Secretary at the time of the 2019 bombings.

Significance of the Case

The case carries considerable political and legal weight in Sri Lanka, as it touches on accountability for one of the nation's worst modern tragedies. Victims' families and civil society groups have long demanded that those responsible for intelligence failures leading up to the attacks be held to account.

The use of the PTA itself remains a deeply contentious issue, with human rights organisations repeatedly calling for its repeal or reform, arguing that it has historically been misused to detain individuals without adequate judicial oversight.

Further updates on the case are expected when the matter is taken up again before the Court of Appeal at a future date.

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