WEBDESK - NAYADAUR
Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court has overturned a presidential pardon granted to hardline Buddhist monk Galagodaatte Gnanasara, ordering him to serve the remainder of a six-year prison sentence for intimidating the wife of a missing political cartoonist.
The ruling marks a rare judicial intervention involving a Buddhist monk in Sri Lanka, where religious figures have traditionally enjoyed significant social and political influence.
Gnanasara was sentenced in 2018 after being convicted of contempt of court and intimidating Sanya Eknaligoda, the wife of journalist and political cartoonist Prageeth Eknaligoda, who disappeared in 2010 and has never been found.
The monk had disrupted a court hearing involving military intelligence officials accused of abducting Eknaligoda. He spoke in support of the officials during the proceedings.
Gnanasara spent less than a year in prison before receiving a presidential pardon from then-President Maithripala Sirisena.
The Supreme Court’s decision means the pardon can no longer shield him from the remainder of his original sentence.
Cartoonist’s Disappearance
Prageeth Eknaligoda was known for cartoons addressing media freedom, political power, and social inequality. His work was critical of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, a nationalist leader who was credited with defeating the Tamil separatist rebels in 2009 after decades of civil war.
Eknaligoda disappeared in January 2010, shortly before a presidential election. His wife, Sanya, has since campaigned for answers about his fate and has repeatedly accused authorities of failing to properly investigate the case.
The disappearance has remained one of Sri Lanka’s most prominent unresolved cases involving a journalist.
Gnanasara rose to prominence through the Bodu Bala Sena, or Buddhist Power Force, a nationalist Buddhist organization. He was considered an ally of Rajapaksa and his brother Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who later became president.
His political and religious activism has made him a controversial figure, particularly over allegations that his rhetoric contributed to religious tensions in the country.
In 2025, Gnanasara received a separate nine-month prison sentence after being convicted of insulting Islam and inciting religious hatred.
The monk’s latest legal setback comes as Sri Lanka continues to grapple with questions surrounding accountability, political influence and the treatment of religious figures within the justice system.
Convictions resulting in prison sentences for Buddhist monks remain uncommon in Sri Lanka, making the Supreme Court’s decision particularly significant.
The ruling also renews attention on the long-running Eknaligoda case and the unresolved question of what happened to the cartoonist more than 16 years after his disappearance.