The Committee on Parliamentary Affairs has decided to hold a debate on the ‘Batalanda Commission Report’ in Parliament in April.
According to a Parliament statement, the first day of the debate will be held on 10 April 2025.
The second day will be scheduled in May, with the exact date yet to be finalised, the statement added.
The ‘Batalanda Commission Report’ was tabled in Parliament on Friday (14 Mar) by Leader of the House, Minister Bimal Rathnayake.
Addressing the Parliament, Minister Rathnayake said the report would be forwarded to the Attorney General for advice on necessary action.
He further said that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake would appoint a special committee to study and make recommendations on the report.
What is the Batalanda Commission Report?
It concerns the alleged human rights violations, murders and disappearances that occurred during the 1988/90 period.
Upon assuming office as President, Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga established the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on September 21, 1995, to investigate these incidents.
Known as the Batalanda Commission, it was tasked with examining the illegal detention, torture, assassination and disappearances of individuals at the Batalanda Housing Scheme.
After nearly three years of gathering evidence, the commission submitted its report to President Kumaratunga in 1998, but the recommendations of the Batalanda Commission Report were never implemented. (Newswire)