Father has depression, I don't know if mother will die any day now.. Lord, grant bail to Namal.

The motion filed before the Colombo Chief Magistrate's Court to obtain bail for Namal Rajapaksa, who is currently remanded on a Rs. 70 million bribery charge, highlighted an emotional family background rather than legal arguments. In the face of serious corruption charges related to the Krish deal, his lawyers sought bail by presenting the urgent health conditions of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Shiranthi Rajapaksa as 'exceptional circumstances'.

President's Counsel Ali Sabry, appearing for suspect Namal Rajapaksa, attempted to secure bail for him before the court based on the ailing health conditions of his mother and father. He stated that the former President, suffering from high blood pressure and depression, had returned home after receiving critical treatment, and that Shiranthi Rajapaksa, who had been caring for him, was now hospitalized due to a serious heart condition.

With the aim of securing bail, the lawyer presented very sensitively the health condition of Mrs. Shiranthi Rajapaksa before the court. It was stated that doctors had identified that the main artery supplying blood to her heart was blocked, posing a risk of complete oxygen supply failure, and that she had undergone one surgery and was currently on a pacemaker. Mr. Ali Sabry's statement, "After the life-threatening open-heart surgery this afternoon, we cannot even be sure if the suspect's mother will be alive or not," was a powerful emotional appeal used to secure the release of a person facing corruption charges. He further emphasized, "If bail is granted today, he will go and see his mother; this might even be the last day he sees his mother."

Although an expedited bail was expected through this sensitive presentation of facts, Assistant Legal Director Ms. Thanuja Bandara, representing the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, responded strongly. She stated that she learned about this urgent motion when she came to court for another matter and emphasized that she needed time to make a detailed written submission. She pointed out that according to the certificate submitted by the Director General of the Bribery Commission under Section 149 of the Anti-Corruption Act, the suspect must be remanded until investigations are concluded, and bail cannot be granted without exceptional circumstances. She also mentioned that this certificate cannot be challenged.

In response, Mr. Ali Sabry stated that he would not challenge the Commission's certificate today, and since remand should not act as a punishment, the emerging health conditions of the parents should be considered as the 'exceptional circumstances' necessary for obtaining bail.

Here, Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama's attention was drawn to the fact that none of these points were included in the lengthy bail application previously submitted on behalf of the suspect. However, the Magistrate stated that the court has the power to consider whether these new circumstances constitute exceptional circumstances for granting bail to the suspect, and ordered the prosecution to inform the court of its position on the matter tomorrow (28) before a suitable order would be issued. He also said that a suitable order would be given thereafter.

Accordingly, the motion regarding the attempt to obtain bail based on the parents' health condition was reconsidered yesterday (28), and bail was not granted. Namal Rajapaksa and Krish Company's former director Janaki Siriwardena remain remanded until November 06 in connection with the Rs. 70 million bribery charge.