Sri Lanka court martial finds former military commander General Fonseka guilty

The first Court martial hearing charges against the former Army Commander of Sri Lanka, General (Retired) Sarath Fonseka, found him guilty of involving in politics while in active service.


The military court resumed sessions this morning and a 'dishonorable discharge' verdict was given this afternoon.
Fonseka's defence lawyers who were away during the court vacation until next week were not present when the verdict was given. He can appeal the sentence in a civil court.
Accordingly the 59-year-old retired military chief would be stripped of his ranks and medals he earned during his 40-year carrier.
However, his punishment has to be ratified by the country's Commander-In-Chief, President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
The former commander and current parliamentarian is facing another court martial on charges of contravention of military procurement procedures.
General Fonseka was arrested on February 08 by the military police and has been detained at the Navy Headquarters since then.
General Fonseka, who survived a LTTE suicide attack, was credited for the Army's victory over LTTE rebels last year.
He contested as a common opposition candidate at the January 26 presidential polls and lost against President Rajapaksa but got elected to the parliament under the Marxist Democratic National Alliance (DNA) at the April 8 general elections.