Hirunika sentenced to 3 years rigorous imprisonment

Former Member of Parliament Hirunika Premachandra has been sentenced to three years rigorous imprisonment by the Colombo High Court.

The former SJB parliamentarian was sentenced after being found guilty of being involved in the abduction of a youth in the Dematagoda area on December 21, 2015 using a Defender and his wrongful detention.

The sentencing was delivered by Colombo High Court Judge Amal Ranaraja on Friday (28).

Accordingly, Premachandra was found guilty of 18 charges and the court ordered that a fine of Rs. 20,000 be imposed for each charge.

The order also stated that if the payment of the fines is defaulted, an additional 06 months imprisonment will be imposed for each charge.

When the case was taken up, Colombo High Court Judge Amal Ranaraja declared in open court that the defendant was found guilty of conspiracy and aiding and abetting the abduction of a youth.

Before the sentencing, Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara, who represented the plaintiff, recalled that the Colombo High Court had previously handed suspended prison sentences and imposed fines on eight supporters of the defendant who pleaded guilty before the court in connection with the abduction incident.

President’s Counsel Anura Maddegoda, who appeared for the defendant Hirunika Premachandra, informed the court that the defendant will file an appeal against this decision.

Accordingly, former MP Hirunika Premachandra, who was sentenced to prison, is currently in the custody of prison officials.

Premachandra had been accused of involvement in abducting, assaulting and wrongfully detaining the youth, identified as Amila Priyanka Amarasinghe, who had been employed at a shop in the Dematagoda area. 

The youth had revealed that while he was employed at a textile shop in the Dematagoda area in 2015, a female named ‘Chamila Geethani’ often visited the shop, following which the two got involved in a relationship. 

It was subsequent to this incident that he was abducted by individuals who had arrived in a Defender, Amarasinghe had told the court.

In 2017, seven persons identified as supporters of Premachandra pleaded guilty before the court, however, the former Parliamentarian did not plead guilty to any of the charges levelled against her.