Court order for the government to appear regarding the opening of Kothmale sluice gates when Ditwa arrived

The Supreme Court, having considered a petition filed alleging that the government violated the fundamental rights of the people by failing to implement necessary measures to control the disaster situation caused by Cyclone 'Ditwa', yesterday (16) ordered the Cabinet of Ministers and the Disaster Management Committee to appear before the court on July 15 to present facts regarding the matter.

The petitioner points out that if the current government, led by the President and the Prime Minister, had acted with proper prior preparation in the face of this natural disaster, the damage could have been minimized. The petitioner requests the court to rule that the fundamental rights of the people, including himself, have been violated due to the respondents' inactive and negligent conduct.

The petition further states that if the authorities had taken steps to inform the public before opening the spill gates of the Kotmale Reservoir, there would have been an opportunity to control the great destruction caused by floods in areas such as Kandy, Peradeniya, Galaha, and Gampola, and that this destruction was exacerbated due to the respondents' dereliction of duty.

This petition, filed by Mr. Keerthi Bandara Kiridena, an attorney from the Kandy area, points out that his office, located near the Kandy Court Complex, was submerged, destroying property including computer data, and causing significant loss to his professional activities.

The relevant order was issued when this petition was called before the bench comprising Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena and Supreme Court Justice Achala Wengappuli, with President's Counsel Upul Jayasuriya appearing for the petitioner and Senior State Counsel Sabrina Ahmed appearing for the respondents.