The Civil High Court has denied former Social Democratic Liberal Party MP Salote Radrodro’s request for leave to appeal. The case was addressed earlier this month by High Court Judge Justice Deepthi Amarantunga.
Justice Amarantunga indicated that Radrodro was convicted based on the evidence presented during the trial. He noted that the claim of a denied fair trial stems from transferring the case from the Magistrate’s Court to a division of the High Court.
The judge stated that any merits of the claim could be appropriately evaluated in an appeal to the Court of Appeal, as seeking Constitutional Redress is not suitable for such matters given considerations of efficiency, consistency, and fairness. He added that granting leave to appeal against the strike-out would constitute an abuse of process.
In detail, this case involved a request for leave to appeal an interlocutory decision regarding a motion to strike out the action for Constitutional Redress due to an alleged abuse of process. Radrodro was charged in Magistrates Court, and the case was later transferred to a division of the High Court. Radrodro challenged the transfer, but after the lower court’s decision was appealed to the High Court, that appeal was unsuccessful, and no further appeals followed.
During the proceedings, it was noted that Radrodro sought Constitutional Redress, claiming a denial of her right to a fair trial because her case could not move forward before a Resident-Magistrate. This issue was cited as a basis for appeal to the Court of Appeal.
Ultimately, the High Court ruled to refuse Radrodro’s leave to appeal, issuing no order for costs.