The Appeal Court last week (18) set a date for July 30 to review of a petition seeking the annulment of an order previously issued by the court that prevented the summoning of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as a witness in the case regarding the disappearance of social activists Lalith Weeraraj and Kugun Muruganandan.
The case is currently being heard at the Jaffna Court.
The petition, filed by the association of relatives of missing persons during the war, seeks a fresh order compelling Rajapaksa to appear as a witness. Lalith Weeraraj and Kugun Muruganandan went missing on December 9, 2011, and the case is being heard in connection with their abduction. Rajapaksa, who was then Defence Secretary, was previously summoned to testify in the Jaffna Court in relation to the case.
Rajapaksa challenged the summons, citing security concerns, and an appeal filed in the Appeal Court resulted in dismissing the order, preventing him from appearing in court. The new petition aims to overturn this decision, as Rajapaksa is no longer serving as president.
The case involves the abduction of Lalith and Kugun, two activists who disappeared in Jaffna in 2011. The relatives of the missing persons are pushing for the court to compel Rajapaksa to testify, arguing that he is no longer protected by the previous ruling, which had prevented him from being summoned while in office.