Jaffna disappearances: GR to give evidence on 29 Sept.

Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has been summoned by the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court to appear on September 29th for testimony in a case involving the alleged enforced disappearance of activists Lalith Kumar Weeraraj and Kugan Muruganandan in 2011. The order came from the Jaffna Chief Magistrate S. Lenin Kumar, as part of ongoing habeas corpus proceedings concerning the two individuals.

Lalith and Kugan were organizing a protest for families of the disappeared, scheduled for Human Rights Day on December 10th, 2011. They were last seen leaving Muruganandan's residence in Aavarangaal around 5 PM on the day before the demonstration, and have not been seen since. At that time, Rajapaksa served as Defence Secretary during the conflict.

Their relatives initially filed a habeas corpus petition in Colombo Court in 2012, and during the subsequent proceedings, the court directed the Jaffna Magistrate’s Court to investigate potential witnesses and submit a report. The inquiry began on September 19th, 2012. Rajapaksa was added to the list of witnesses in 2017, but he has never testified.

He successfully petitioned the Court of Appeal in 2017, arguing that his safety might be compromised by former LTTE members should he appear in Jaffna. An interim injunction was subsequently issued to prevent his appearance in Jaffna. Proceedings were put on hold entirely due to Rajapaksa's immunity as President, which ended when he resigned in 2022.

In July 2025, his legal team informed the Supreme Court that Rajapaksa was prepared to testify, but requested to do so in Colombo due to ongoing security concerns. He had previously mentioned his willingness to appear in any Sri Lankan court outside the north. In December, the Jaffna court mandated him to provide evidence in support of these claims through an affidavit, ruling that any such assertions must be formally presented to the court for the proceedings to continue.

On June 2nd, the court permitted Rajapaksa to testify via video link, and on June 19th, he was ordered to appear in person at a major court in Colombo to give his testimony via an online connection, and to provide three available dates for the hearing.