The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) will convene a Special General Meeting (SGM) of its entire membership on Sunday (15 February) in Colombo—the first such gathering in 14 years—BASL President Rajeev Amarasuriya said.
Speaking at a special media briefing on Saturday (14 February), Amarasuriya said the meeting was called in response to the fatal shooting of an Attorney-at-Law and his spouse in Akuregoda.
He noted that although the BASL Executive Committee met earlier in the day to discuss the incident, the matter affects the entire legal community and should not be decided solely at executive level.
“This is an incident that affects the entire legal community. This is not something that should be decided only by our Executive Committee. Therefore, we have decided to call a Special General Meeting of all members of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka tomorrow at 3.00 p.m. The next steps of the BASL will be decided at that meeting,” he said.
Amarasuriya added that the last SGM of this nature was held in 2012 during the impeachment proceedings against former Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake.
“After 14 years, we are calling this meeting again,” he said.
The Special General Meeting is scheduled for 3.00 p.m. on Sunday at the Dr. H.W. Jayawardena QC Auditorium at the BASL Secretariat in Colombo.
The meeting follows the fatal shooting of Attorney-at-Law Buddhika Mallawarachchi and his wife, who were killed inside their vehicle at a supermarket car park in Akuregoda on February 13. Police investigations are ongoing, with multiple special teams deployed to identify and arrest those responsible.
