Gnanasara Thero Missing

It is reported that the Secretary of the Bodu Bala Sena organization, Ven. Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thero, who was convicted of contempt of court and granted a presidential pardon in 2019, cannot be found at present, following the Supreme Court's decision to invalidate and revoke the pardon. Prison officials have visited the temple where he resides in Rajagiriya, Nawala, with the aim of taking necessary steps to re-imprison him to serve the remaining portion of his six-year sentence.

However, other monks residing there have informed officials that they do not know the current whereabouts of Ven. Gnanasara Thero.

A prison official has stated that prison authorities cannot take further legal action until Ven. Gnanasara Thero surrenders to the police or is arrested by the police. Meanwhile, a senior official of the Bodu Bala Sena organization has stated that Ven. Gnanasara Thero has never attempted to incite racial conflicts in the country. The official further pointed out that racial tensions in the country subsided after Zahran Hashim was identified as the leader of the National Thowheeth Jama'ath organization, which was responsible for the series of Easter Sunday terrorist attacks.

Prior to the presidential pardon granted by former President Maithripala Sirisena in May 2019, Ven. Gnanasara Thero had served only about nine months of his sentence. The three-member Supreme Court bench, in delivering its verdict, stated that this decision to grant a pardon was arbitrary and violated public trust as well as the principles of natural justice. Accordingly, subject to the Supreme Court's decision, he will have to serve the greater remaining portion of his stipulated six-year sentence in prison in the future, in accordance with relevant legal and prison procedures.

This new legal situation has arisen against the backdrop of a renewed discussion on national unity and hate speech in the country. Recently, representatives of the All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama organization met with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and expressed their appreciation to the government for maintaining national unity over the past two years, while also requesting appropriate action against hate speech disseminated through social media.