-Reported by a Special Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -06.Nov.2024, 11.45 pm) Dr. Seigu Shihabdeen Mohamed Shafi, a senior resident doctor at the Kurunegala Teaching Hospital, who had been accused by certain parties of performing sterilizations on mothers during cesarean surgeries, was ordered to be released from the related case by the Kurunegala Magistrate Court today (06).
Following investigations that extended over five years, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) referred findings to the Attorney General, who then informed both the court and CID in writing that there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges against Dr. Shafi. Consequently, no further legal action is expected against him.
CID investigations revealed that among approximately 130 mothers who had initially lodged complaints suspecting sterilization, many had subsequently conceived children. Additionally, two mothers underwent tests twice to verify potential blockages in their fallopian tubes, with results indicating no such blockages.
Dr. Shafi was initially detained by the Kurunegala Police on May 24, 2019, and later handed over to CID on the directive of then-Acting Inspector General of Police, Chandana Wickramaratne, for further investigation. He was detained for about a month under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). However, CID later informed the court that there was insufficient evidence to proceed with charges under the PTA, redirecting investigations to assess potential criminal charges under the Penal Code instead.
During the investigation, some officers, including Additional Solicitor General Thusith Mudalige and Assistant Superintendent of Police B.S. Tissera, alleged interference and intimidation from certain individuals, including the monk Athuraliye Rathana Thero and Kurunegala Hospital’s then-Deputy Director, Kadangamuwa.
Additionally, complaints related to this case had been filed with the Judicial Service Commission by CID and the Young Journalists Association against the then-Magistrate of Kurunegala.
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by (2024-11-06 19:45:38)
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