The conscience of the confession in the dock...

If we write in the vernacular, the former IGP and the former Secretary of the Ministry of Defense were hanged. Some are happy about that verdict and others are sad. We cannot say anything about it. 

We cannot write about the right or wrong of the court's verdict. If there is any deficiency or loss in that verdict, it should be judged by the court above the court that gave the verdict. 

There is no doubt that the two accused who were sentenced will appeal to the higher court against their sentences. Until then, they will have to serve their sentences as "pending appeals". Those sentenced to death are called by that name when they appeal. A pending appeal is not sent to a prison work party. 

Until recently, there was a system of granting life pardon to those sentenced to death on appeal on February 4th.  In that life pardon, the death penalty was limited to 20 years. Under the rehabilitation system in effect in prisons in those days, if such a prisoner had served about 12 years of his 20-year sentence with good conduct, he would be given leave to go home and then be released on parole.

But now, due to the lack of life pardons, many death penalty convicts are in prison without any idea of ​​a specific date for their release.

It is clear that the former IGP and the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense will have to serve a long time. We cannot predict how long that sentence will be.

Pujitha Jayasundara was a person who worked very closely with the citizens as an IGP. He even allowed citizens to contact him on his personal phone.

 Hemasiri Fernando, the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense, was a close associate who helped the Ravaya newspaper a lot. But now there is no point in writing those character certificates. They will not be freed from the character certificates we write.

The two were sentenced to death for failing to act on intelligence information regarding the Easter attacks. At one point, the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense told the media that although he was aware of such an attack, he did not expect such devastation.

There was also a dispute between former IGP Pujith Jayasundara and the then President Maithripala Sirisena. It has been reported that Pujith Jayasundara was deprived of the opportunity to meet the President on an official basis due to this dispute. It was the then former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe who recommended Pujith Jayasundara as the IGP.

This confirms that the controversial dispute that arose between the President and Ranil Wickremesinghe in those days has become a chain of events that have caused even government officials to be embarrassed on an official basis.  This chain of events ended in a serious and tragic tragedy.

One can accuse the two main actors in that tragedy of former President Maithripala Sirisena and former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. If one were to weigh the weight of the garbage in the pockets of the good governance government, that accusation would be impossible to dismiss.

The two leaders of the country were in a tug-of-war. Today, it is the officials under those two leaders who are going to this fight.

These two tyrants must not have thought about the passage of time. The passage of time is a doctor. Time is a nurse. Time is a teacher. Time is like the great Brahma because it creates. It is like God because it destroys. Time conceals the truth of some things. It reveals the truth of some matters. It judges. It provides solutions.

Although the footprints of the walker were recorded in the sand of time, the mark of the one who stayed there is only the shape of a pussy. We have to write about the events that are happening now by digging up this past time. We cannot even give decisions about who is right or who is wrong. The court should decide what is right and wrong.

However, our attention has been drawn to the statement made by the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense from the dock before the death penalty was given.

He had said the following there.

"Your Majesty, this is unfair. But it is useless now. I had no desire to do this. There are two people who should have done this. They are Nilantha, who is under the protection of the Attorney General's Department, and former President Sirisena. I accept any punishment that is given. History will acquit me someday."

 Although this statement by the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense has no legal validity, this is his shocked conscience. He states that the Easter attack took place with the knowledge of former President Maithripala Sirisena and Senior DIG Nilantha Jayawardena. This statement is made by the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense of this country. Therefore, this statement should not be taken lightly. It also confirms that the Easter attack was a planned attack.

Usually, even an accused who has been sentenced to death rarely admits his guilt. But here, the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense has revealed that the Easter attack was a planned crime. Not only that. It is possible that he also knew the criminals who carried it out.

 The former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense was a high-ranking official in the civil service. There is no doubt that he has some understanding of the legal system in this country. That is why his revelation that two of the accused responsible for the Easter attacks were under the protection of the Attorney General is not easy.

We are currently assessing the ease with which various stories and allegations are being made in society about the Attorney General's behavior.

Dakshina Liyanarachchi✍️