Colombo High Court determined that Terrorism Prevention Act (PTA) charges cannot proceed against five defendants, including Nadun Chinthaka Wickramaratne, known as 'Harak Kata', who faced accusations of conspiring to escape while detained under detention orders at the Criminal Investigation Department.

Court orders noted that maintaining charges under the Penal Code remains permissible given the alleged offences committed by the accused.

Colombo High Court Judge Buddhika C. Ragala delivered this order after accepting preliminary objections presented by defence lawyers, including President's Counsel U. R. de Silva and lawyer Jaliya Samarasinghe, appearing for the defendants.