The Presidential Secretariat has drawn attention to the news that a person named W.H. Athula Thilakaratne, who was detained in the Anuradhapura Prison under presidential pardon on the occasion of the 2025 Vesak festival, has been released and that there is a serious irregularity behind the incident.
According to Article 34 (1) of the Constitution, the President has the power to grant a general pardon to prisoners. Accordingly, a list of names of prisoners selected by the prison superintendents is forwarded to the Ministry of Justice.
The list is examined by the Ministry of Justice and forwarded to the Presidential Secretariat, and accordingly, with the approval of the President, those prisoners are granted a general pardon.
However, the list of prisoners eligible for general pardon sent by the Commissioner General of Prisons to the Presidential Secretariat on 2025-05-06 and with the number 06/01/Yojitha /J.P.Sama/Var:/05-12/2025 in relation to the above incident consists of 388 names and the name of the person who was imprisoned in connection with a financial fraud in the Anuradhapura Prison is not included anywhere in that list. That is, that person is not included in the 388 names approved by the President for pardon.
The Presidential Secretariat has filed a complaint with the Criminal Investigation Department yesterday (06) under the heading “Regarding the release of a prisoner who was not approved under the Presidential Pardon”.
A formal investigation will be conducted in this regard and disciplinary action will be taken against the responsible officers in the future.