Court to decide on transferring Diana Gamage’s cases to multiple courts

Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama scheduled the further hearing of evidence for May 26 regarding a case filed by the Criminal Investigation Department against former State Minister Diana Gamage.

The charges involve obtaining a passport by providing false information to the Controller General of Immigration and Emigration and violating the Immigration and Emigration Act by remaining in Sri Lanka without a valid visa.

The Magistrate announced that a decision will be delivered on May 26 regarding whether the seven cases filed against the suspect will be distributed among other courts within the Colombo Magistrate’s Court complex.

Additionally, the court will rule on the possibility of conducting the evidence hearings sequentially, starting the next case only after the conclusion of the current one.

Lawyer Mohan Seneviratne requested that while two cases remain in the Chief Magistrate's Court, the other five be transferred to the Additional Magistrate Courts.

He further requested that cases be taken up one after the other rather than simultaneously.

While acknowledging there are no technical obstacles to simultaneous trials, the defence cited the mental stress faced by the suspect as the reason for the request.

The State Counsel noted that a previous request had already been made to retain two cases in the Chief Magistrate's Court and transfer the remaining five to other courts.

After considering the submissions from both parties, the Chief Magistrate postponed the proceedings until May 26 to deliver the relevant orders.