Impunity Continues: Champika Ranawaka Must Be Arrested

By Faizer Shaheid –April 10, 2016

Faizer Shaheid

We are constantly reminded of an era in the past when the ruling elite were above all laws despite constant nagging from the general public. It has always been a part of the nonpareil politics of the country. Not even the guise of good governance has helped hide the hypocrisy in the Government of today. We have already seen how easily the people forgot the alleged abduction carried out by Hirunika Premachandra in a black Defender, and now Patali Champika Ranawaka makes another felonious attempt at escaping the grips of the law.

The funny part about this Yahapalanaya Government is its niche that the rule of law prevails above all else. When the Government proposed to carry out investigations into all of the wrongdoing committed during the last regime, they conveniently chose to omit any and all wrongdoing that the present Government may indulge in.

In recent times, the allegations have transcended from mere Constitutional violations to rabid criminal law violations. Now the crime rate is rampant thanks to the examples set by the ruling elite. Leave out the corruption allegations, and you would notice how Hirunika Premachandra was arrested on a Saturday, weeks after being accused of abduction, only to be granted bail just as fast as she had been arrested. Now we have Minister of Megapolis and Western Development, Patali Champika Ranawaka engaging in an alleged hit and run case, but still evading arrest.

Background

It all began when Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka was accused of walloping into a motorcycle rendering the motorcyclist named Sadim Sampath and the pillion rider M. Abeysundera seriously injured. Two young men named Gayashan Vinura and Mohamed Sufi, who were friends of the injured parties had given chase to the black SUV that sped past without a care for the injured bikers. The two young men had subsequently forced the fleeing vehicle to a halt, and figured that Ranawaka was in the driving seat.

Ranawaka had allegedly conceded to the two young men that he was at fault and asked to go to the Borella Police Station, but the two men had been reluctant to leave their friends behind in a state of injury. A complaint had subsequently been lodged at the Borella Police Station but it was also alleged that a fresh driver had taken the place of Ranawaka when they finally arrived at the Police Station, and the statement to the Police was similarly recorded.

The driver as claimed by Ranawaka, Thusitha Kumara, had been subsequently arrested and released on a personal bail of Rs. 500,000/-.

The latest news articles indicate that the story has been flipped over. The latest news article I read on Daily Mirror quotes Gayantha Karunathilaka stating that the bike had hit from behind and that it was a 1000 CC bike. The latest version is reminiscent of the previous regime where a Deputy Minister by the name of Hemal Gunasekera slapped Police Constable Suminda Saman on the Southern Expressway and then attempted to turn the tables around by digging out allegations of corruption against the Police Constable.

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