Sri Lanka parliament votes to fire impeached police chief

The determination comes aft a committee recovered Deshabandu Tennakoon blameworthy of gross maltreatment of power.

Sri Lanka’s Parliament has voted to occurrence the country’s constabulary main for misconduct and gross maltreatment of powerfulness successful the island’s archetypal impeachment of an inspector general.

Lawmakers connected Tuesday voted to sack Deshabandu Tennakoon, who was accused of sending a squad of equipped officers connected a botched raid successful 2023 successful Weligama that triggered a weapon conflict with a abstracted constabulary unit, starring to the decease of an officer.

No 1 opposed his removal portion 1 subordinate abstained. The determination came aft a parliament-appointed committee opened an enquiry into the allegations against Tennakoon and past period released a study that recovered him blameworthy of 19 charges related to misconduct and maltreatment of power.

The committee recovered that helium had “spearheaded the questionable, amerciable enactment of shooting” astatine the W15 edifice successful Weligama, wherever a section constabulary portion opened occurrence connected a squad sent by Tennakoon to intimidate the hotel’s owner.

A authorities authoritative told the committee that the constabulary chief, who headed a unit of 85,000 officers, was moving a “criminal network” and was unfit to serve, adjacent astatine the lowest ranks.

There has been nary absorption from Tennakoon since the impeachment process was initiated past month. The 54-year-old is the archetypal caput of constabulary successful the island’s past to beryllium dismissed.

He was appointed constabulary main successful 2023 by then-President Ranil Wickremesinghe contempt protests from absorption lawmakers and civilian rights activists who said helium was not acceptable for the post.

Before his appointment, Sri Lanka’s highest tribunal had ruled that helium tortured a fishy successful custody by rubbing menthol balm connected his genitals.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies