The Court of Appeal has issued an open warrant for the arrest of Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera and imposed an overseas travel ban preventing him from leaving Sri Lanka.
The court ordered that Gnanasara Thera be arrested and produced before the Court of Appeal.
The open warrant is to be executed through the Inspector General of Police.
The court also directed that the Controller General of Immigration and Emigration be informed of the overseas travel restriction.
The order represents a further development in the Court of Appeal proceeding concerning enforcement of Gnanasara Thera's prison sentence for contempt of court.
An earlier warrant had required that he be arrested and produced before the Court of Appeal on October 1.
Today's open warrant and travel restriction followed the failure to produce him before court as previously directed.
This Court of Appeal proceeding must remain legally distinct from a separate case before the Colombo High Court.
The High Court has separately issued a warrant after Gnanasara Thera failed to appear in proceedings concerning alleged remarks insulting Islam.
The two warrants therefore arise from different cases.
Do not merge the allegations, procedural histories or legal consequences of the two proceedings.