The Bodu Bala Sena General Secretary appeared before the Colombo High Court in a case concerning alleged insulting statements about Islam, days after the Supreme Court invalidated a 2019 presidential pardon that had secured his early release from a contempt of court conviction.
Ven. Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thera, General Secretary of the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), made a court appearance on September 16 before Colombo High Court Judge Buddhika C. Ragala in proceedings brought by the Attorney General over statements allegedly insulting Islam. The judge ordered the case to be recalled on September 30.
The appearance followed a Supreme Court ruling on September 10 that invalidated a presidential pardon granted to Gnanasara Thera by former President Maithripala Sirisena in 2019. A three-judge bench comprising Justices Janak de Silva, Sobhitha Rajakaruna and Sampath Abeykoon found the pardon to be arbitrary and invalid in law following consideration of fundamental rights petitions. Gnanasara Thera had been convicted by the Court of Appeal in 2018 for contempt of court and sentenced to six years imprisonment, serving approximately nine months before the pardon secured his release from Welikada Prison.
Outside the court, Gnanasara Thera rejected reports suggesting he had absconded or gone into hiding following the Supreme Court judgment. He stated he was prepared to face legal proceedings and would abide by the law. The Sunday Island had reported that prison officials visited his temple in Rajagiriya to locate him, but sources close to Gnanasara Thera disputed this account, denying that such officials had visited and rejecting claims about his whereabouts being unknown.
The current High Court case concerning alleged anti-Islam statements is separate from the contempt of court conviction underlying the invalidated pardon. In June, the Colombo High Court had rejected an appeal by Gnanasara Thera against a nine-month prison sentence imposed by the Colombo Magistrate's Court for statements made at a 2016 media briefing found to have disrupted religious coexistence. Police indicated they are awaiting direction before determining further action following the pardon's invalidation.