BY Ruwani Fonseka
**Vital documents kept away from Court of Appeal Bench-hunting case!
**Supreme Court grants Special Leave to Appeal in “controversial” Jerome Fernando case
The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka has granted leave to proceed in a controversial case filed by “self styled Prophet” Jerome Fernando, today (08).
The Supreme Court specifically directed the Registrar of the Court of Appeal, who was personally present in Court, to ensure that all documents pertaining to the case be held in the Court of Appeal safe and directed the Registrar that no one else should have access to those documents.
The direction was made consequent to an order granting special leave to Appeal today, where allegations were made by Senior State Counsel Shaminda Wickrema that “the Written Submissions filed by all parties had not been included in the Court of Appeal brief after they had been submitted to the Registry and also to the chambers of the President Court of Appeal, Justice Bandula Karunaratne”, well in advance.
Reporting from the Supreme Court vicinity today (08), The Newsdesk correspondent confirmed that the two-bench judges, Justice Thurairajah and Justice Achala Wengappuli, ordered that all documents pertaining to the investigation on Jerome Fernando, be placed under the safe-keeping of the registrar of the court of appeal, and not be made accessible to anyone.
The argument today was of a case that was filed on the 3rd of November 2023, in which the petitioner, Jerome Fernando withdrew his case before the court hearing and without sufficient reason, and thereafter re-filed the same case after remedying the issues in the preliminary limited objections raised by Senior State Counsel Shaminda Wickrema and President’s Counsel Sanjeewa Jayawardena (PC).
The case filed by Jerome Fernando was then once again filed before Justice Bandula Karunaratne, President of the Court of Appeal.
Noteworthy points from the case:
*Interim order 377/23- petitioner (Jerome Fernando) was allowed to come into Sri Lanka and not be arrested for 48 hours.
*Senior State Counsel Shaminda Wickrema and President’s Counsel Sanjeewa Jayawardena raised objections that the case could not be heard because a similar case has been filed previously and withdrawn without sufficient reason by Jerome Fernando.
*Jerome Fernando filed the same case after remedying the issues in the limited objections raised by Senior State Counsel Shaminda Wickrema and President’s Counsel Sanjeewa Jayawardena.
*The same case was filed once again before Justice Bandula Karunaratne.
*The case was then argued for several days, both legally and factually, by both Counsels on behalf of the State, Attorney General, Police and the complainant Buddhist Priests.
*Despite the written submissions by both the State and the Buddhist Priests (all parties), which was also tabled recently in Parliament, the order did not mention many of the substantial issues argued in court or the written submissions filed thereafter.
*Therefore, it is suspected that such deviations were made as an effort by Jerome Fernando and his legal team to manoeuvre “Bench- hunting tactics”.
Additionally, in today’s hearing, the Priests who had filed the case were not present, and neither was their representing President’s Counsel, Sanjeewa Jayawardena.
The counsel representing Jerome Fernando was Jagath Wickramasinghe.
The next hearing is set for the 28th of August 2024.
Fernando landed himself in boiling water after making controversial comments during his sermons in church, which was widely circulated on social media, and in return outraged citizens islandwide.
Upon instructions by President Ranil Wickremesinghe, the CID launched an investigation into the self styled ‘Prophet’ Jerome Fernando, which also included money laundering allegations due to Fernando’s close affiliation with Zimbabwean – British Uebert Angel, who was exposed by international media for money laundering, and the large amount of funds accumulated with no source.
The self-styled ‘Prophet’ fled the country hours before an arrest warrant was issued for him and returned months later, after filing several cases in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent his arrest upon return to Sri Lanka.
