Today (May 26), Pastor Jerome Fernando petitioned the Supreme Court under the Fundamental Rights (FR) Act to prohibit the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) from detaining him.
The respondents to the FR petition are the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), the DIG in charge of the CID, the CID director, and the Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the CID’s cybercrimes unit.
Pastor Fernando claims the CID has opened an investigation on a remark he made during his sermon on April 30. Pastor Fernando submitted the FR petition through his solicitors. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Penal Code are used to guide the investigations.
The self-styled “prophet” claims that after making representations to the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court, the police named him a suspect.
Pastor Fernando calls the CID’s attempts to arrest him “illegal,” but he adds that the police haven’t given the court any proof that his remarks pose a threat to the country’s religious peace.
In addition to asking the Supreme Court to restrain the respondents from detaining Pastor Fernando until the hearing on the FR petition is over, Pastor Fernando is requesting a court order declaring that his fundamental rights have been violated as a result.
