An inquiry has been launched into the unprofessional behaviour of certain officers of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) over the questioning of journalists.
The Police Headquarters said the inquiry has been launched on the directive of the Inspector General of Police (IGP).
Issuing a statement, the Police said the CID had recently informed journalists, including chief editors of several media institutions to report to the Department over an ongoing investigation.
“This is not the normal procedure followed by the CID when investigating cases. The CID usually requests assistance from journalists and media institutions and the relevant persons and organizations willingly provide their assistance generally,” the statement said.
The Police said journalists are not summoned to the CID over ongoing investigations, under the normal procedure.
Extending its apology to journalists who were affected by the actions of the said CID officers, the Police Headquarters said an inquiry will be conducted on the actions of these officers.
The Police Headquarters added that the Police Department respects the freedom of expression of the public, including journalists, at all times.
The inquiry comes after CID officers had visited the office of a local media institution and had requested journalists, including the chief editor, to report to the Department over ongoing investigations into the recently uncovered Garlic scam involving state-owned enterprise Lanka Sathosa.
The officers had approached the local media institution despite Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa instructing relevant officials to refrain from questioning journalists who had reported on the Garlic scam. (NewsWire)
