Court Orders Ven. Pallegama Hemarathana to be Remanded Until May 22

The Colombo Fort Magistrate ordered today (May 13) that Ven. Pallegama Hemarathana Thero, the Atamasthanadhipathi, be remanded until the 22nd of this month. The Thero is accused in a case involving the alleged grave sexual abuse of a 15-year-old minor girl.

The Magistrate issued this order after visiting Nawaloka Hospital to personally observe the condition of Ven. Hemarathana Thero. Based on medical recommendations, the Magistrate further ordered that the Thero be transferred to the Colombo National Hospital.

Legal Background and Jurisdictional Issues Yesterday (May 12), when the case was called, the Anuradhapura Chief Magistrate, Siyapath Sasindu Wickramaratne, refused to issue a fresh order to re-remand Ven. Hemarathana Thero, who was already in custody.

The Chief Magistrate stated that:

His court had not yet received the official order from the Colombo Magistrate’s Court No. 08.

He lacked the legal authority to issue a re-remand order in a situation where the suspect, Ven. Pallegama Hemarathana Thero, was not physically produced before his court.

Medical Reports During the proceedings, prison officials presented a medical report of the suspect, which had been sent by the Superintendent of the Welikada Remand Prison through the Anuradhapura Prison Superintendent, Prasad Premathilake.

The officials informed the court that:

The suspect’s health condition was not stable enough to endure long-distance transportation.

He was scheduled to undergo several specialized medical tests, making it impossible to produce him before the Anuradhapura Chief Magistrate’s Court at that time.