Court Orders Report on DNA Testing in Chemmani Mass Grave Case

The Chemmani mass grave case was taken up yesterday before the Jaffna Magistrate’s Court, presided over by Magistrate S. Lenin Kumar.

During the hearing, Attorney-at-Law Penislus Thushan, appearing under the guidance of President’s Counsel M. A. Sumanthiran, raised concerns regarding the conduct of DNA testing related to the excavated human remains.

He informed court that the seventh recommendation of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka report on the Chemmani excavation emphasized that DNA testing should be carried out overseas. He further pointed out that Sri Lanka’s Justice Minister had acknowledged in Parliament last year that there are no local experts available to conduct such specialized testing.

Following submissions, the Magistrate ordered the Judicial Medical Officer to submit a detailed report by the 27th of this month. The report must clarify whether DNA testing can be conducted in Jaffna, the availability of qualified experts, and, if testing is to be done abroad, identify suitable universities where it could be carried out.

Earlier, during proceedings held on August 15, President’s Counsel M. A. Sumanthiran had also stressed that DNA analysis should be entrusted to internationally recognized and experienced foreign universities.

At that time, the Judicial Medical Officer had stated that DNA testing could be conducted using newly acquired equipment at the University of Jaffna. However, Sumanthiran strongly objected, arguing that the Chemmani case should not be the first instance of testing using new machinery, and subsequently made written submissions to the court reinforcing his position.

Join our WhatsApp group for instant news updates : Click HERE