SC decision cannot be overruled by PM or Speaker - BASL

The Supreme Court's decisions cannot be overruled by any other forum, and neither the Prime Minister nor the Speaker have the ability to do so, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka announced today.

In a statement, the BASL strongly condemned the government's attempts to undermine the Supreme Court's interim rulings over the appointment of Inspector General of Police Deshabandu Tennakoon.

The BASL rejects the contention that the Supreme Court lacks the authority to challenge nominations made by the President and approved by the Constitutional Council.

The BASL maintained that the Constitutional Council's decisions fall under the Supreme Court's Fundamental Rights Jurisdiction in terms of Article 41J of the Constitution. The BASL said that following the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, the President's powers, except for declaring war and peace, are subject to the Supreme Court's Fundamental Rights Jurisdiction (Article 35).

"It is in the exercise of the said powers that the Supreme Court has previously quashed the grant of pardons by the President, quashed the dissolution of Parliament and held against the President who was in office during the Easter Sunday bomb attacks," the BASL statement added.

The BASL stated that a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court heard all parties including the Attorney General and counsel for IGP Deshabandu Tennekoon and delivered its order granting leave to proceed. The Court also issued an interim order restraining Deshabandu Tennekoon from exercising the duties, functions and powers of the Inspector General of Police until the final determination of the applications. The said cases had been fixed for hearing on 11th November, 2024, with the consent of all parties including the Attorney General and all counsel.

In its statement, the BASL expressed its fullest confidence in the judiciary of Sri Lanka including the Supreme Court and that it will stand by the judiciary in order to ensure that its integrity is protected at this critical hour.
This statement was issued under the signature of BASL Secretary Chathura Galhena.