(COLOMBO) – Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has appointed a controversial official to head the island-nation’s Police Department despite protests from the country’s main Opposition and others, it was officially announced on Tuesday.
Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Deshabandu Tennakoon was appointed as the Inspector General of Police (IGP) in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said in a statement.
Main Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa said the Constitutional Council (CC) has not approved the appointment of Deshabandu Tennakoon as the new IGP.
“There were four votes in favour, two against while two members of the CC abstained. At least five votes are required for a decision. The Speaker has a casting vote only in case of a tie. There was no tie. The Constitution has been blatantly violated for the second time,” he said.
House Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena is reported to have used his decisive vote as the chairman of the Constitutional Council (CC) to affirm the appointment of Deshabandu Tennakoon as the Inspector General of Police (IGP) permanently.
Prior to his fresh appointment Tennakoon served as the Actg. Police chief for a period of three months.
The CC is a 10 member body. Seven of them are from Parliament and three others from civil society. The Speaker, Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader are its members by virtue of their office . Besides, there are three other MPs nominated by the President, the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader. The tenth member representing the minor parties is yet to be appointed.
A court recently found Tennakoon guilty of human rights abuse where he had tortured a man in police custody while he served as a Superintendent of Police in the outskirts of the commercial capital Colombo.
The court also directed the National Police Commission (NPC) to investigate the matter and take the necessary follow up action against Tennakoon but the matter has remained in limbo ever since.
