{
  "id": 16140533,
  "title": "Contempt charge against IGP: Police to consult AG",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/23/contempt-charge-against-igp-police-to-consult-ag",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-23T00:06:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Island Sri Lanka",
    "slug": "the-island-sri-lanka",
    "url": "http://island.lk/contempt-charge-against-igp-police-to-consult-ag/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The police legal division is likely to seek counsel from the Attorney General's Department regarding the directive issued by Gampaha Magistrate Bandula Gunarathna concerning IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya, according to Police spokesman ASP F.U. Wootler. The Magistrate recently ordered the court registrar to forward case files to the President of the Court of Appeal to initiate contempt proceedings against Weerasooriya for alleged disregard of court orders. Weerasooriya, who assumed the role of IGP in August, is also an attorney-at-law. ASP Wootler confirmed that the legal division is currently examining the case. The Magistrate criticized the IGP for failing to comply with a directive from several months ago, which prohibited law enforcement authorities from filing cases based on false charges. The directive was issued by an area DIG on October 19, applicable to police divisions in Gampaha, Kelaniya, and Negombo. Weerasooriya issued a circular by the area DIG on October 19, applicable to Gampaha, Kelaniya, and Negombo police divisions, disregarding the Magistrate's directive. The Magistrate ordered punitive measures against Weerasooriya following the case of three policemen and the police department being directed to pay Rs 200,000 in damages to Chamara Chathuranga Marasinghe, who was falsely accused of drug possession by the Gampaha Anti-Corruption Unit. Senior attorney-at-law Senaka Perera, chairman of the Committee for Protecting Rights of Prisoners, expressed concern over numerous instances of police framing suspects, emphasizing that the issue has received significant public attention after the recent Negombo prison killings.",
  "summary": "By Shamindra Ferdinando Police spokesman ASP F.U. Wootler said yesterday that the police legal division would most probably consult the Attorney General’s Department regarding the Gampaha Magistrate Bandula Gunarathna’s directive in respect of IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya. ASP Wootler said so responding to The Island query yesterday (22) regarding the previous day’s court proceedings in the […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}