Tilvin Silva statement has triggered a complaint to the Coal Commission, with Sugeshwara Bandara alleging contempt and political interference.
Tilvin Silva statement has created a serious problem for the Coal Commission’s independence, New People’s Front leader Sugeshwara Bandara has claimed.
Bandara said even Bandula Sena, the Secretary of the Presidential Special Commission appointed to investigate alleged irregularities in coal imports, had admitted that the statement made by Tilvin Silva created a serious issue for the Commission’s independence and the self-respect of its judges.
The Commission was appointed by the President on April 17 to investigate alleged fraud and corruption in coal imports.
It consists of a Supreme Court judge, a Court of Appeal judge, and a High Court judge, and has been vested with full judicial powers.
Bandara questioned how Tilvin Silva, speaking publicly about the Commission at a May Day rally in Tangalle, could claim that the report would be released in three months, that the government would be cleared, and that several opposition members would have to go to jail.
He pointed out that the President had ordered the Commission to submit its report in six months, and asked how Silva could know the outcome in advance.
Sugeshwara Bandara has filed a complaint with the Commission’s Secretary, Bandula Sena, requesting that Tilvin Silva be immediately arrested and that a statement be recorded under the Contempt of Court Act No. 8 of 2024.
Bandara further alleged that Silva’s conduct amounts to serious contempt of court.
He also claimed that Silva was now influencing independent institutions, including the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary.
Bandara warned that if immediate action is not taken against Tilvin Silva to further protect the independence of the Commission, the public would conclude that this Commission too is merely another tactic used by the President to suppress the opposition.
