When Bail Meets Power: Why the Wanninayaka–Attorney General Meeting Raises Serious Ethical Questions
By Colombo Wire Investigations Desk
Sri Lanka’s legal system is once again at the centre of a public controversy—not because of a judgment delivered, but because of an image circulated.
That image shows Attorney-at-Law Wanninayaka, recently granted bail by the Mount Lavinia Magistrate’s Court in 2025 and whose matter remains live before the Court of Appeal, attending a meeting with Attorney General Parinda Ranasinghe, alongside a group of lawyers publicly rallying in support of the Attorney General at a time when there is intense public pressure for his resignation.
No one disputes the formal legality of the meeting. Lawyers are entitled to express opinions. Citizens may associate freely. The Attorney General may receive delegations.
But legality is not the same as legitimacy.
And in a country where public confidence in the justice system is dangerously eroded, appearances matter almost as much as outcomes.
This article does not comment—directly or indirectly—on the merits of Mr. Wanninayaka’s case. He is entitled to the presumption of innocence, full legal representation, and privacy while proceedings are ongoing. We expressly respect those rights.
What we question instead is something more fundamental: ethical judgment, professional propriety, and institutional integrity.
Because when a lawyer with an ongoing case before the appellate courts publicly aligns himself with the nation’s chief prosecutor—who exercises vast discretionary power—the question is unavoidable:
Is this appropriate? And if it is not, who is responsible for policing it?
A Meeting at the Wrong Moment
The context cannot be ignored.
Attorney General Parinda Ranasinghe is currently facing sustained public criticism, including from civil society groups, victims’ families, and segments of the legal community itself. The criticisms centre on selective prosecution, perceived inertia in politically sensitive cases, and a broader belief that the Attorney General’s Department has lost public trust.
It is against this backdrop that a group of lawyers appeared—almost in a unionised formation—publicly declaring: “Leave our Attorney General alone. We want fairness in the legal system.”
Among them was Mr. Wanninayaka.
That presence transformed what might otherwise have been dismissed as a routine show of professional solidarity into a matter of national concern.
Because fairness in the legal system does not merely require independence in fact; it requires independence in appearance.
The Attorney General’s Unique Power
Unlike private advocates, the Attorney General of Sri Lanka occupies a singular constitutional position.
The Attorney General:
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Advises the state,
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Directs prosecutions,
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Exercises discretion on indictments,
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Influences prosecutorial policy, and
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Represents the Republic in superior courts.
Even where the Attorney General is not personally involved in a specific file, the institutional hierarchy of the Department creates unavoidable influence.
This is why, in mature democracies, strict ethical firewalls exist between prosecutors and individuals whose matters are sub judice.
The issue here is not whether the Attorney General interfered. There is no evidence of such conduct, and none is alleged in this article.
The issue is whether a lawyer with a pending appellate matter should place himself in a position where such questions naturally arise.
Ethics Is Not About Guilt—It Is About Judgment
The legal profession has long understood that ethics go beyond black-letter law.
Judicial ethics demand recusal not only where bias exists, but where a reasonable observer might apprehend bias. Prosecutorial ethics demand restraint not only from misconduct, but from conduct that undermines confidence.
By the same logic, advocates are bound by ethical duties that transcend their immediate legal rights.
A lawyer whose liberty has recently been secured by court order, and whose legal fate remains undecided, must be acutely conscious of how his actions may be perceived—especially when those actions involve the very apex of the prosecutorial system.
This is not a question of criminality.
It is a question of professional self-respect.
Where Is the Bar Association of Sri Lanka?
This brings us to the role of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL).
The BASL is not merely a trade union. It is the custodian of professional ethics, entrusted with upholding standards that protect the public interest as much as the profession itself.
If similar conduct occurred in jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom, Canada, or Australia, it would almost certainly trigger:
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An ethics inquiry,
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Guidance from the professional regulator, or
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At minimum, a public advisory discouraging such conduct.
Yet in Sri Lanka, silence prevails.
The question the BASL must answer is not whether Mr. Wanninayaka broke a rule, but whether the existing rules are sufficient—or whether they have become so elastic that they no longer serve their purpose.
Collective Pressure or Collective Optics?
Equally troubling is the collective nature of the demonstration.
When lawyers assemble en masse to defend an officeholder who controls prosecutorial discretion, the optics resemble institutional pressure, not independent advocacy.
For the public, the message is corrosive:
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Are lawyers closing ranks?
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Are professional networks being mobilised?
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Is access, rather than merit, becoming the currency of justice?
None of these conclusions may be fair. But they are predictable.
And predictability is precisely what ethical frameworks are designed to prevent.
Lawyers Are Not Above the Law
A recurring public grievance—one increasingly voiced across Sri Lanka—is the perception that lawyers operate in a privileged, lightly regulated sphere.
Colombo Wire has consistently argued for systemic reform, including:
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Mandatory electronic payments for legal fees,
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Prohibition of cash transactions,
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Enhanced financial transparency,
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Clear separation between legal practice and political office.
These are not punitive proposals. They are modern regulatory norms in many jurisdictions.
Transparency protects honest lawyers—the overwhelming majority—while isolating misconduct.
The Revolving Door Between Law and Politics
The controversy also highlights a deeper structural problem: the revolving door between legal practice and political power.
Sri Lanka has seen multiple lawyers ascend to ministerial or cabinet-level positions—Justice Ministers, Finance Ministers, Foreign Ministers—only to later return to private legal practice.
In many countries, this is prohibited or tightly restricted.
The reason is simple: power once exercised cannot be unseen.
A former minister carries:
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Institutional knowledge,
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Personal influence,
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Informal authority.
Allowing such individuals to re-enter legal practice without restriction invites conflicts—real or perceived.
The public understands this instinctively. The law has simply failed to keep pace.
Why This Matters Beyond One Lawyer
This article is not about Mr. Wanninayaka as an individual.
It is about what his appearance at that meeting symbolises.
It symbolises:
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A profession insufficiently sensitive to optics,
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A regulatory body reluctant to intervene,
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And a justice system that too often underestimates public intelligence.
Sri Lankans no longer accept reassurances alone. They demand structures that prevent doubt from arising in the first place.
An Eye-Opener for Reform
The Vanninayaka episode should be treated as an institutional wake-up call, not a personal scandal.
What is required now is:
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Clear ethical guidance from the BASL on interactions between lawyers with pending cases and prosecutorial authorities;
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Enhanced transparency in lawyer–state interactions;
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Structural separation between politics and legal practice; and
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Regulatory reform that restores public confidence without undermining legitimate defence rights.
Justice is not only what courts deliver.
Justice is what the public believes the system is capable of delivering.
And belief, once lost, is far harder to regain than bail.
Colombo Wire reiterates: we express no view on the merits of any ongoing case. Our concern is institutional, ethical, and rooted in the public interest. Lawyers, like all citizens, are equal before the law—and equally accountable to its standards.