The Court of Appeal has agreed to release character references, including one written by a former TD, submitted on behalf of a former government adviser convicted of sexually exploiting a boy at a Christian children’s camp in 2017.The order came following an application to the three-judge court on Tuesday by The Irish Times, which argued releasing the testimonials would be in the public interest.At an appeal hearing last April, Judge John Edwards said not a “single one” of those who provided a reference for Daniel Ramamoorthy (40) mentioned the 13-year-old victim or the “vile nature” of the crime. The judge said an ex-TD was among those who submitted references. Former Fianna Fáil politician Jim Glennon, who represented the Dublin North constituency from 2002 to 2007, later confirmed he had provided one, a decision he described as “naive” and “wrong”. He offered an “unreserved apology to the victim and to their family” to whom his actions may have caused additional pain and distress. The Court of Appeal had declined an Irish Times request for access to the character references last April. The media organisation applied again on Tuesday.Edwards said the application by solicitor Matthew Austin, of Hayes Solicitors, and barrister John Maher, was “well laid out”, and the court was “happy” to accede this time.Ramamoorthy’s solicitor, Michael Finucane, asked if the court was “limiting” its order to this instance or if it was making a “wider comment”. He submitted that the newspaper was looking for an order that would set a precedent.Judge Patrick McCarthy said: “We are making an order in this case.” The judges did not specify whether the order could have a wider effect.In a sworn statement, Austin, on behalf of The Irish Times, said the character references were “clearly part of the administration of justice” and should be made available to the public through responsible accredited media.The publication believes there is a “strong public interest” in reporting publicly the content of Glennon’s testimonial, as well as the other character references given to the court. He contended that the constitutional guarantee that justice shall be administered in public requires these references to be made public. Austin said Irish Times and other court journalists have found an “inconsistency” in recent years in how the courts deal with character references. Some judges will make all testimonials public, while others will read and summarise them without revealing details in open court, he said. With malign actors seeking to undermine the institutions of the State, it is now more important than ever that there is “no suggestion of a hidden process or a secret path to influencing judges”, he said. “The public discourse should be founded on truth, rather than on rumour and speculation,” he said. A one-time government department adviser, Ramamoorthy was found guilty last year of sexually exploiting a teenage boy he met while volunteering as a Christian children’s camp guide. He was jailed for two years and four months. Ramamoorthy, with addresses at Whitebarn Road, Rathfarnham, and in Germany, had also pleaded guilty to a separate charge of possessing child sexual abuse material, known in law as child pornography.An appeal against the severity of his sentence was rejected at the Court of Appeal in April. The court noted the appellant had not taken responsibility for the offence against the boy, there was no acceptance of fault or criminal liability, no acknowledgment of the impact of his conduct on the victim and no “earnest” remorse.Ramamoorthy – described in court as a motivational speaker, social media influencer and entrepreneur – had at one point acted as an adviser to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment on start-ups, his sentencing hearing was told. He is the son of a diplomat and was educated at Yale University in the United States.