A dramatic legal turn in the Easter Sunday terror saga as Sri Lanka’s Attorney General orders fresh CID investigations into former President Maithripala Sirisena, former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, and senior security officials named by the Presidential Commission.
Sri Lanka’s long and painful Easter Sunday terror attacks investigation has entered a decisive new phase. The Attorney General has formally instructed the Criminal Investigation Department to initiate fresh criminal investigations against individuals identified by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry as bearing responsibility for the catastrophic security lapses of April 21, 2019.
The directive requires the CID to carefully examine the Commission’s detailed findings and recommendations, and to take appropriate legal action where evidence justifies prosecution. This move signals renewed momentum in the quest for accountability over one of the deadliest terror attacks in Sri Lanka’s history.
Those named by the Commission include former President Maithripala Sirisena, former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando, and former Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara. Several senior police and intelligence officials have also been listed, including Sisira Mendis, Nilantha Jayawardena, Nandana Munasinghe, Lalith Pathinayake, Deshabandu Thennakoon, Wasantha Wickremesinghe, G.O. Perera, and M.R. Latheef.
The letter directing the CID was signed by Additional Solicitor General Dileepa Peiris and Deputy Solicitor General Madhava Tennakoon, and addressed to CID Director Shani Abeysekara. The Presidential Commission, chaired by Justice Janak de Silva, had previously outlined systemic failures in national security coordination.
The CID is now tasked with conducting comprehensive investigations and submitting a report for further legal instructions, potentially reshaping Sri Lanka’s political accountability landscape.
