By The Pulseline News Desk
Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara’s response yesterday (8) to concerns raised by Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA) President Steven Thiru over the Supreme Court proceedings on the proposed 22nd Amendment has triggered a fresh political exchange.
Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa had raised Thiru’s concerns in Parliament, particularly over procedural fairness, transparency, judicial independence and the handling of petitions challenging the proposed constitutional amendment.
Premadasa also warned that doubts over the judiciary’s independence and credibility could have wider implications for Sri Lanka’s international standing, investor confidence and the country’s investment climate.
Nanayakkara, however, did not directly address the specific concerns raised in Thiru’s report. Instead, he questioned the CLA’s institutional status, stressing that it is a private, membership-based organisation and is not formally affiliated with the Commonwealth Secretariat.
While acknowledging the CLA’s constructive work, the Minister sought to distinguish it from the official institutions of the Commonwealth.
That had prompted SJB MP and lawyer Chithral Fernando to hit back, rejecting the characterisation of the CLA as an unregistered “fee paying club” and challenging the Minister on the legal basis of his argument.
Fernando had also noted that the CLA is also among the list of affiliated associations to the Commonwealth Secretariat like the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), in which MPs of the Sri Lankan Parliament are also members.
With President Anura Kumara Dissanayake preparing to travel to Antigua for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, Fernando had added a sarcastic political twist: if the CLA is dismissed because it is not formally registered, the President should be told that the Commonwealth itself is also “unregistered” and should turn around and come home.
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