A long-running legal battle linked to a high-profile road accident has resurfaced, as the Court of Appeal moves to reconsider a petition that could determine whether serious criminal charges against a former cabinet minister will proceed to full trial.
The Court of Appeal has ordered that the writ petition filed by former Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka, seeking to quash the charges filed against him in the Colombo High Court, be taken up again on January 22. The petition relates to a road accident in which a young man sustained serious injuries.
The matter was called before a bench comprising the Chairman of the Court of Appeal, Justice Rohantha Abeysuriya, and Justice Priyantha Fernando. At that hearing, it was announced that a separate bench consisting of Justices Shashi Mahendran and Amal Ranaraja has been appointed to hear and determine the petition on the next date.
Accordingly, the petition is scheduled to be called before the newly appointed bench on January 22, when further legal submissions are expected.
The case against Patali Champika Ranawaka was filed by the Attorney General before the Colombo High Court on February 28, 2016, under four indictments. The charges stem from an incident in which Ranawaka is alleged to have caused serious injuries to a person while driving a jeep bearing registration number WPKT 7545. The indictments also include allegations of fleeing the scene without reporting the accident to the police, disregarding the injured individual, failing to control the speed of the vehicle, and failing to drive with due care and vigilance.
Ranawaka’s legal team has argued that the manner in which the indictments were framed is contrary to the law. His lawyers raised preliminary objections before the Colombo High Court, seeking to have the indictments dismissed at the outset. However, the High Court rejected those objections and ordered the case to proceed to trial.
Following that decision, Patali Champika Ranawaka filed the present writ petition before the Court of Appeal, requesting an order to annul the High Court’s ruling. He contends that the refusal to dismiss the indictments amounts to a legal error and that the case should not proceed in its current form.
The outcome of the January 22 hearing is expected to be significant, as it will determine whether the high-profile case continues before the Colombo High Court or faces a fresh legal review.
