Appeal Court to rule on objection to IA petition

[TamilNet, Monday, 03 November 2003, 16:30 GMT]
The Court of Appeal of Sri Lanka Monday reserved its verdict for December 18 on the preliminary objection raised by the Attorney General that the court did not have the power to issue an order on the petition seeking the court’s intervention to order a referendum in the Northeast province before the establishment of an interim administration, legal sources said.

The Chief Priest of the Seruvila Raja Maha Vihare, Venerable Dharmakeerthi Thera, filed this petition in the Court of Appeal. He has sought the court to order a public referendum before the establishment of the interim administration for the Northeast province, legal sources said.

When the petition came up for inquiry before the Court of Appeal Monday, the Attorney General, who appeared for the State, raised a preliminary objection that the court had no power to order a public referendum. The power to make such an order lay with the President, said the AG.

The Attorney General said that the petition was not in order, as the President had not been made a respondent in this case. He wanted the court to annul the petition, legal sources said.

At the conclusion of the inquiry, the Court of Appeal said an order whether the court could entertain the petition for inquiry would be delivered on December 18, legal sources said.