COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Lawyers for Maj. Gen. Suresh Sallay, the former head of Sri Lanka's State Intelligence Service, told the Court of Appeal on Thursday that the senior police officers investigating him over the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings had themselves been faulted by official inquiries for failing to prevent the attacks.
The argument was made during a hearing on a writ petition filed by General Sallay, who is challenging the legality of his arrest and subsequent detention under the Prevention of Terrorism Act in connection with the coordinated suicide bombings that killed more than 260 people at churches and luxury hotels on April 21, 2019.
Appearing for General Sallay, President's Counsel Sanjeeva Jayawardena told a two-judge bench that several official investigations into the attacks had recommended criminal action against Shani Abeysekera, the director of the Criminal Investigation Department, and Ravi Seneviratne, who oversaw the department as deputy inspector general at the time of the bombings.
The inquiries, he said, concluded that the two officers had failed to act on intelligence warnings received before the attacks.
“Shani Abeysekera, who failed to discharge his duties as C.I.D. director, has now become the investigator of Suresh Sallay,” Mr. Jayawardena told the court.
Mr. Jayawardena said a succession of official investigations had found no evidence linking his client to the attacks. He cited findings from the Presidential Commission of Inquiry, a Parliamentary Select Committee, a Sectoral Oversight Committee, and committees headed by Justices A.H.M.D. Nawaz Imam, Jayaki de Alwis, and Janak de Silva, as well as proceedings before the Supreme Court.
He also referred to the findings of the Janak de Silva committee, arguing that the report documented extensive evidence of efforts by the Islamic State to radicalize followers in Sri Lanka through local extremist networks, supported by numerous intelligence reports, but did not implicate General Sallay.
The hearing was conducted before Justice Rohantha Abeysuriya, the President of the Court of Appeal, and Justice Priyantha Fernando. The bench fixed the matter for further hearing on July 10.
Deputy Solicitor General Suharshi Herath appeared for the Attorney General.
In his petition, General Sallay seeks an interim order suspending the detention order issued against him under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, as well as an order staying proceedings against him before the Colombo Fort Magistrate's Court.
The respondents named in the application include Priyantha Weerasuriya, the Inspector General of Police; Mr. Abeysekera, the Colombo Fort Magistrate; and the Attorney General, among others.
According to the petition, the investigation stems from a complaint lodged with the Criminal Investigation Department on Oct. 4, 2024, by the Rev. Rohan de Silva, a Catholic priest, concerning allegations aired in a Channel 4 documentary.
General Sallay has denied the allegations, maintaining that he was outside Sri Lanka during the periods in which investigators allege he was in contact with Zahran Hashim, the extremist preacher who led the Easter attacks, or members of his network.
The petition states that General Sallay served as minister counsellor at Sri Lanka's High Commission in Malaysia from December 2016 to December 2018 and resided there throughout that period. It further states that from Jan. 7, 2019, to Nov. 29, 2019, he was in New Delhi attending the 59th National Security and Strategic Studies Course at India's National Defence College.
The Easter Sunday bombings occurred while he was in India, his lawyers told the court, arguing that the timeline undermines the allegations against him.
