The Court of Appeal has allowed the Centre for Environmental Justice to withdraw a writ petition in which they sought an order directing Wildlife Department not to translocate the Sinharaja elephants.
The petition was consequently dismissed pro forma by Court of Appeal (President) Preethi Padman Surasena and Justice Arjuna Obeysekara.
The Centre for Environmental Justice and an environmental scientist had filed a writ petition in the Court of Appeal seeking an order directing the Wildlife Minister and the Wildlife Department Director General to formulate a National Policy to protect elephants.
The petitioners further sought an order in the nature of writs of certiorari quashing Wildlife Minister’s decision to translocate the pair of elephants remaining in the Sinharaja area.
Petitioners sought an order to formulate a National Policy for protection of elephants, including steps to minimise attacks on human beings, acting under and in terms of the provisions of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance.
Petitioners stated that the Minister and the Director General of Wildlife had decided to translocate the elephants roaming in Sinharaja to a completely different environment such as Horowpothana or a small plot of land near Kalawana without conducting any scientific study thus risking the lives of the elephants.