– The Colombo District Court today permitted former Defense Secretary Hemasiri Fernando and former Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara to be removed as defendants from a civil lawsuit filed by an Attorney-at-Law who was injured in the 2019 Easter Sunday suicide bombing at the Shangri-La Hotel.

The plaintiff, Attorney-at-Law Moditha T.B. Ekanayake, had instituted the action seeking Rs. 500 million in compensation for the severe injuries, permanent disabilities and medical expenses he claims to have suffered as a result of the attack.The lawsuit was originally filed against 12 defendants, including former Presidents Maithripala Sirisena and Ranil Wickremesinghe, former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando, former IGP Pujith Jayasundara and the Attorney General. The plaintiff alleges that the defendants failed to exercise due diligence and reasonable care to prevent the attacks, and has cited the Attorney General on the basis of the State’s vicarious liability for the alleged negligence of public officials.

When the case was taken up before the Colombo District Court, Ekanayake informed court that he did not intend to proceed against Hemasiri Fernando and Pujith Jayasundara, who were cited as the third and fourth defendants respectively, stating that both had already been sentenced to death by the Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar in connection with the Easter Sunday attacks.Counsel appearing for the remaining defendants did not object to the application, following which the District Court permitted the removal of the two defendants from the proceedings.Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe was also removed from the action at the plaintiff’s request on a previous occasion.

Meanwhile, Counsel Pulasthi Rupasinghe, appearing for former President Maithripala Sirisena, informed court that he intends to challenge the maintainability of the action against his client.The District Court fixed the matter for October 19 and directed the remaining defendants to file written submissions on the objection by that date.According to the plaint, the plaintiff had visited the Shangri-La Hotel on April 21, 2019, when he sustained serious injuries in the suicide bomb attack carried out by Islamic extremists during the coordinated Easter Sunday bombings.