WIFE AND DAUGHTER, BOTH DISABLE

A protest demanding proper punishment be meted out to Supreme Court Judge K.A. Sarath de Abrew

In the process, the Judge Sarath de Abrew has filed a petition yesterday for Fundamental Rights to the Supreme Courts saying that he is free from guilt and that the complaint of the said servant-woman has not been inquired into properly. The petition of the Judge says that he had advertised  searching for a house-maid sometime ago in the newspapers in order to look after the wife of Judge Abrew  the former of whom was suffering from a state of mental depression and also his daughter of 26 years displaying similar characteristics. The applicant who responded in this instance, one M. Nilusha Damayanthi has woven this complaint to the police, he says.

According to the complaint she had made to Mt. Lavinia Police a 'B' report has been forwarded to Magistrate's Court by them and that what is mentioned therein is that the Judge's daughter is in the habit of constantly assaulting the said servant-woman and that the Judge has ignored such happenings, which the Judge says is false. It is stated in the 'B' report that he had assaulted the house-maid with a pistol and that because of such assault she had scrape injuries on her chest region and on these grounds she had run away from home and complained to the police. Judge Sarath de Abrew has said that the police had filed action in this manner because of the judgement given by him and the other lady Judge in respect of the Fundamental Rights petition filed by Mr. Gotabhaya Rajapaksa at the Supreme Courts. Though he is not against the investigation carried out in respect of the complaint made by the housemaid, his petition asks that those investigations be carried out in a justified manner. The petition of the Judge further states that the Judge being taken into custody would cause damage to the image of the Supreme Court and its image as well and it is a violation of Fundamental Rights.

Whatever it is, it is learned that by now the Attorney-General has given approval to the Criminal Investigation Department to take Judge Sarath de Abrew into custody in connection with this incident. The Attorney-General  has taken this step after considering the evidence supplied above and the medical reports concerned and the CID has been instructed to take him into custody on a warrant issued by Magistrate's Court, Mt. Lavinia.

It was also learned that the Attorney-General has given this order last evening (6) at about 2 o'clock having surveyed the judicial medical reports of the doctors who examined the house-maid who was hospitalized after the assault.