UPFA Western Provincial Councillor Hirunika Premachandra yesterday charged that MP Duminda Silva was indirectly coercing witnesses from coming forth to give evidence by making latent threats.

“By saying that there will not be enough evidence to incarcerate him, what he is trying to say is that people will not come forth with evidence. This is an indirect threat to strike fear into potential witnesses, especially when there is a pending High Court trial” she told the Daily Mirror.

She said people still feared Duminda Silva because he was still a Member of Parliament, but the fear psychosis would change after the general elections.

“People fear that he still has power as an MP, but power is here one day and gone the next, so after the general elections this will change. I believe that after this impending change, the people will come forth and give evidence without fear” she said

The Provincial Councilor added that she was confident that justice would be served when witnesses were allowed to speak freely.

She made these comments following a statement by Duminda Silva that there wasn’t enough evidence to hold him liable for his alleged crimes.(Jehan Gunasekara)