Yoshitha Rajapakse remanded over money laundering

Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse's second son was remanded in custody for two weeks after being arrested on Saturday (Jan 30) on a charge of money laundering, police and court officials said.

Navy officer Yoshitha Rajapakse, 27, was taken into custody by authorities for questioning about dealings at his private television channel, Carlton Sports Network (CSN), police said.

Yoshitha, a navy lieutenant, was taken before a magistrate court in a suburb of Colombo and remanded, a court official said, adding that four other suspects were also held along with the former president's son.

Among the four was Nishantha Ranatunga, a younger brother of Sri Lanka's World Cup winning cricket captain Arjuna Ranatunga. Nishantha had been the chief executive of the CSN channel that secured broadcasting rights for all cricket matches.

The arrests followed months of investigations into the CSN station, which is accused of illegally using government equipment and vehicles for its daily operations and failing to pay billions of rupees in taxes.

Yoshitha is the closest family member of former president Rajapakse to be arrested. In April, authorities arrested Rajapakse's younger brother Basil who had been economic development minister under his sibling.

The former leader who was in court along with his wife and his eldest son Namal, a member of parliament, accused the new government of leading a witch hunt targeting his family. "This is an attempt to seek revenge," Rajapakse told reporters after his son was led away in handcuffs.

Rajapakse and his relatives controlled nearly 70 per cent of Sri Lanka's national budget during the former president's rule that ended in January last year when he was defeated at the polls by his former ally Maithripala Sirisena.

The new president has vowed to investigate allegations that members of Rajapakse's family siphoned off billions of dollars from the country during his nearly 10-year rule.

Local rights organisations have accused the government of not taking swift action to investigate corruption under Rajapakse's rule.

- AFP/de

​Yoshitha Rajapaksa questioned by FCID

The Financial Crimes Investigations Division (FCID) is currently questioning the second son of the former President, Yoshitha Rajapaksa at the Navy Headquarters regarding the reported financial irregularities at the Carlton Sports Network.

Earlier, speculation was rife that Lieutenant Yoshitha Rajapaksa, the second son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa would be summoned before a military court in connection with the abuse of his position in violation of the Navy Act, authoritative defence sources said.

The Navy conducted a full scale investigation into the charges levelled against Rajapaksa and the investigation report has already been referred to the President. Navy sources added that further action would be taken against Rajapaksa based on the President's decision.

MP Namal Rajapaksa said. “Yoshitha was asked to come to the Navy Headquarters this morning, and he is being questioned by the FCID over the CSN case,” MP Rajapaksa told. 

Earlier in the day, CSN Channel Chief Rohan Weliwita, who is also the former President Rajapaksa’s media secretary was arrested with four others by the FCID over alleged financial irregularties taken place at the channel. His lawyer confirmed that Mr. Weliwita and four others would be produced before the court this evening. Earlier, CSN Director Nishantha Ranatunga was questioned by the FCID over same allegation.

FCID arrests Rohan Weliwita

Chairman of the Carlton Sports Network Rohan Weliwita was arrested by the Financial Crimes Investigations Division (FCID) this morning over investigations in to the financial irregularities at the Carlton Sports Network.

Rohan Weliwita was the Media Coordinator of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Two treasure trove pots recovered from Peacock mansion swimming pool

Police could not find any valuable thing except two treasure trove pots from the swimming pool at the Peacock Mansion filled with sea sand.

The swimming pool at the Peacock mansion filled with sea sand was cleared under Police protection yesterday in the presence of high ranking police officers and owner of the Peacock Mansion Sri Lanka Labour Party leader and famous businessman A.S.P. Liyanage.

The pool was cleared on a request made by A.S.P. Liyanage to the IGP since the circulation of news that former President Mahinda Rajapaksa had stashed away gold and cash packed in polythene bags in the swimming pool at the Peacock mansion in Rajagiriya, which belongs to Liyanage.

Apart from the request, Liyanage lodged a complaint with the Welikada Police seeking police protection for the swimming pool and necessary mediation to clear it.

Accordingly, the sand removing process commenced manually around 11 a.m. under police observation of Welikada Police and the Criminal Investigation Department. However, a backhoe-loader was deployed for the process around 2.45p.m. aiming to expedite the process as manual cleaning took much time. But, nothing was detected from the swimming pool except two treasure trove pots buried for astrological purposes and on astrological advise.

"In a letter to the IGP, I requested that an investigation be conducted into the issue, including the clearing of the swimming pool to ascertain whether there is a truth in such rumours since this situation great mental distress tome and my family members," he said.

"When the mansion was prepared to be gifted to former President MahindaRajapaksa for a two year period, several changes in the mansion had been made according to astrological predictions, including filling the swimming pool with sea sand.

On the advices of astrologers, the swimming pool was filled with sea sand by Rajapaksa as it was a bad omen to have a pool in the Western part of the house.

Graham Ford’s appointment as SL Cricket Head Coach

South African Graham Ford previously held position as the Head coach of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) from 2012 to 2014. Following his leave from SLC, Ford joined Surrey in 2014 and the club got promoted back to the First Division of the County Championship and reached the final of the Royal London One Day Cup in the following season.

“We are extremely disappointed to be losing Graham Ford who has not just been an outstanding Head Coach but has played an integral role in the progress that we have achieved over the last two years. – Said Alec Stewart, Surrey Director of Cricket.

He added “It was a very tough decision for Graham to leave Surrey. But we understand that the opportunity to go back and coach at international level with Sri Lanka was too good to turn down. Despite the timing of his decision, we wish Graham all the best and we will immediately start our search for a new Head Coach.”

Mother and son granted bail - Dematagoda accident:

The 15-year-old boy and his mother arrested on the charge of knocking down a 10-year-old girl and her 47-year- old mother at a pedestrian crossing in Dematagoda were yesterday ordered to be released on bail by Colombo Additional Magistrate Chandana Kalansuriya.

The 15-year-old boy and his mother were ordered to be released on a cash bail of Rs.10,000 each with two sureties of one million rupees. Meanwhile, Court directed the suspects that compensation of Rs.100,000 be paid to the aggrieved party as a relief payment.

Furthermore, the Court called for child probation report regarding the 15-year-old boy and ordered him to appear before a probation official with immediate effect. The victims, Weerasinghe Arachchilage Anula and Samadhi Rasmika were killed when a car driven by 15-year-old boy crashed into them. Further magisterial inquiry into the case fixed for February 25.

Prime Minister Ranil Slams Media in Parliament

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremessinghe today in Parliament slammed some media institutions on the manner they had reported the issue over the involvement of foreign judges in the accountability process on the war.

He insisted that the government will not agree to an international war crimes tribunal on the Sri Lanka issue.



“We have not signed the Rome statute,” he said.

The Prime Minister said that he met President Maithripala Sirisena and Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera yesterday and discussed the issue.

He said at the meeting it was agreed that the government position on the investigation on the war is that it will be a domestic process which will be open to international assistance.

Earlier the opposition said the government had different views on the matter with the President saying no to foreign judges and the Prime Minister saying international involvement has not been ruled out.The Prime Minister however said today that foreign judges cannot get involved in the process unless they have the approval of the local Supreme Court and the Bar Association of Sri Lanka.

Wickremessinghe said that Sri Lanka will conduct the probe on the war within the framework of the Constitution.

He also slammed some private media institutions saying they are attempting to overthrow the government.

The Prime Minister also accused some media institutions of attempting to instigate communal disharmony.

Sri Lanka Rank 83rd IN 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index

Sri Lanka has been ranked 83rd among 168 countries in the 2015 annual Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index.

The index ranks countries according to the perceived level of public sector corruption.
Transparency International in a statement said this is a marginal improvement on its 85th placed ranking in 2014.

The ranks are based on a scoring system that ranges between 0, public sector perceived as highly corrupt, to 100, public sector perceived as very clean.

Two-thirds of the 168 countries assessed scored below 50.

In 2015 Sri Lanka has scored 37 points, which marks a slight decline to the 2014 score of 38 points.
This indicates that from the perspective of business people and country experts, based on data sources from independent institutions specialising in governance and business climate analysis, the perception of the extent of corruption in the Sri Lankan public sector has slightly worsened.

Sri Lanka is clubbed together with four other countries – Benin, China, Colombia and Liberia – all with a score of 37. Among the South Asian countries Sri Lanka ranks third below Bhutan and India. Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan ranked below Sri Lanka.
Denmark took the top spot for the 2nd year running, with Finland, Sweden and New Zealand making up the top four.
North Korea and Somalia were ranked at the bottom. The overall CPI index has shown that people working together can succeed in the battle against corruption.

JVP leader On Rajapaksa's foreign Bank accounts

The JVP yesterday demanded to know from government how many files the latter had submitted to the Attorney General to take legal actions on investigations into the frauds and corruption issues of the previous government. 

JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake making a special statement in parliament said there were media reports to the effect that the government was in possession of information about several accounts belonging to members of top political family of this country in foreign banks.

Cabinet Spokesman at the cabinet press briefing held on Jan 14 said that the government had found details with regard to three accounts in a private bank in Dubai belonging to a member and three other close affiliates of a VIP political family. The sum total of the monies in the three accounts was more than one billion US dollars.

One account had 1.086 billion US dollars another account had 500 million US dollars. Another account belonging to a former secretary and a chairman of a public corporation had 1.8 billion US dollars. Another government MP had told media recently that he knew of a sum of Rs 426,560 million belonging to former rulers. "According to the information it could be concluded that the government had sufficient information of corruption and frauds that took place in the past and it is in a position to take legal action against those responsible. 

There was a public discourse in recent times that the government should investigate all corrupt deals and confiscate the wealth of those found guilty of swindling public money. Further to that one of the main slogans of the Jan 08, 2015 presidential campaign by President Maithripala Sirisena was to punish the corrupt. It was one of the promises made in the manifesto. "Now one year has passed but the new administration has not been able to take substantial action against those involved in mega-swindles. 

People think that the government safeguards the corrupt and exert its influence to manipulate the investigations to serve the purposes of its political survival. Even in last October the government pledged to take action against the fraudsters but the investigations against them have been stalled," MP Dissanayake said. He demanded to know from the government the progress it made with regard to the investigations into the allegations of foreign bank accounts the Cabinet spokesman had mentioned recently. 

 Leader of the House University Education and Highways Minister Lakshman Kiriella said Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe would respond to the JVP leader’s questions on a future date.

Yoshitha to summon before Military court

Speculation' is rife that Lieutenant Yoshitha Rajapaksa, the second son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa would be summoned before a military court in connection with the abuse of his position in violation of the Navy Act, authoritative defence sources said.

The Navy conducted a full scale investigation into the charges leveled against Rajapaksa and the investigation report has already been referred to the President. Navy sources added that further action would be taken against Rajapaksa based on the President's decision.

"However, according to the findings of the inquiry, there is enough room to believe that the President will decide in favour of a Court

Martial. Multiple allegations against the Navy officer and alleged violations of the Navy Act were examined during the inquiry," a senior Navy officer involved in the investigation told the Daily News.

.Yoshitha Rajapaksa was accused of having held the position of Chairman of a private company, Carlton Sports Network (CSN), while being a military officer.

According to legal opinion holding such a position while being a military officer is against military law.

"Another allegation leveled against him is that he had allegedly undertaken many foreign tours, without obtaining written permission from the Navy. Not even a Navy Commander has enjoyed such privileges," sources said.

An investigation is to be carried out as to how Lieutenant Yoshitha had allegedly gone overseas nearly 30 times. At that period not even top officers had undertaken foreign trips without written permission.

Sources said that the findings of the internal investigations carried out by the Navy have proved that a large amount of money had allegedly been spent by the previous government for the foreign tours and training programmes of Yoshitha Rajapaksa.

"If found guilty before a military court, Yoshitha will be punished," the sources said.

Police Ordered to Arrest BBS monks

Around 30 monks belonging to Bodu Bala Sena are to give themselves up to Homagama police today (28).

They have taken the decision pursuant to an order issued by the Homagama magistrate’s court yesterday to arrest those who had behaved in an unruly manner when BBS general secretary Galagodaatte Gnanasara Thera was ordered remanded.

These monks will not be given bail, as they are accused of illegal assembly, damaging state property, assaulting police and disrupting to police duty.

37 under investigation

Three police teams are investigating to arrest, within the next two days, 37 persons, including monks, for their disorderly conduct at the court complex.

They have identified the suspects through video footage and pictures.

During the incident on January 26, the OICs of Athurugiriya and Wellampitiya police and two STF commandos were injured and damage caused to the vehicle of a prison official.

An organized group protested against the remanding of Gnanasara Thera on a charge of contempt of court, and assaulted and bitten several policemen, investigations have revealed.

The IGP has instructed the DIG in charge of the western province to submit a detailed report into the incident.

He has been ordered by the prime minister to handover a report to the Mahanayake Theras of Malwatte and Asgiriya Chapter regarding the monks’ conduct during the incident.

Different standards for law enforcement - Bodu bala sena

Different standards were applied by the law enforcers to MP Hirunika Premachandra (when she was arrested for allegedly kidnapping someone) and the Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera when he was charged with contempt of court and the disruption of court proceedings, alleged the Collective of National Bikkhu Organisations today.

The Collective of National Bikkhu Organisations comprises the BBS, Ravana Balaya, and Sinhala Ravaya.

The Ven. Pahiyangala Ananda Sagara Thera, speaking at a media briefing held at the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) head office, alleged that the manner in which the law enforcement agencies took action on the two incidents demonstrated that the judicial system was not the applied equally to everyone.

He asked whether the law enforcement agencies acted only against Buddhist monks when there were many serious problems which should be addressed by them.

Condemning the prime minister’s statement in parliament that some robe wearers were causing a tense situation in front of the Homagama Magistrate’s Court, the Thera alleged that the robe wearers were not BBS members but persons sent there by the prime minister.

He referred to them as the “Sirikotha/Temple Trees Force.” He requested all Buddhist monks in the country to come together to protest against injustice. He said a dharma war may erupt unless the government ensured that Buddhism could function without hindrance.

“We were shocked upon hearing that Gnanasara Thera was remanded. They could have granted him bail because he apologised to the magistrate,” he said.

Court orders To arrest ASP and HQI over Embilipitiya incident

The Embilipitiya Magistrate has instructed the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to arrest the suspects including the former Embilipitiya Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) and the Headquarters Inspector (HQI) in connection with the clash which resulted in one death on January 04.

The Magistrate ordered the CID to immediately arrest the ASP and the HQI and produced them before the court as well as to arrest the other suspects and produced them in an identification parade, President’s Counsel Hemantha Warnakulasooriya told.

The clash involving a group of policemen and several civilians attending a function at a residence resulted in the death of one youth and injuries to several others.

The investigation into the incident was handed over to the CID on Friday (22) based on the instructions of the Attorney General (AG).

Four policemen and three civilians were hospitalised with injuries following the clash at a residence on Nawa Nagara Road in Embilipitiya on January 04 while one of the latter succumbed to injuries just days later.

Family member of the deceased claim he was beaten and pushed off the top floor of a building while the police spokesman had stated that he had jumped.

Villagers also allege that two policemen requesting for liquor from the homeowners at the party had triggered the clash.

Meanwhile the Minister of Law and Order Sagala Ratnayake told Parliament today that it was police officers who had informed the police emergency hotline and the ASP in question regarding as incident and not neighboring residents.

Tense situation prevailed outside the Homagama Magistrate’s Court

A tense situation has arisen in front of the Homagama Magistrate’s Court as a group of about 200 monks have gathered there in protest over the diction to remand Bodu Bala Sena General Secretary Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera.

Monks representing the BBS, Ravana Balaya, and Sinhala Ravaya have reportdely blocked the road near the court to prevent the prison bus from leaving the premises.

Several police teams and officers attached to the Police Anti Riot Squad have been summoned to the location. A vehicle equipped with water cannon has also arrived a short while ago, reports say.

The Homagama Magistrate’s Court today remanded Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera until 09 February. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera was arrested after he surrendered to the Homagama police, on Tuesday (26) morning.

A warrant had been issued for the arrest of Gnanasara Thera, yesterday, on the charges of allegedly threatening Sandhya Eknaligoda, the wife of missing journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda, at the court premises

Sri Lanka Cricket launches Super T20 cricket

A million rupees awaits the winner of the inter-provincial Super Twenty20 tournament organized by Sri Lanka Cricket that begins at the R.Premadasa Stadium today. The tournament is being revived after a lapse of about 10 years.

Its main objective is to find out talented players to represent Sri Lanka at the international cricket arena and to develop the standard of domestic cricket in the country.

Five teams Colombo Commandos, Galle Rangers, Hambantota Troopers, Kandy Guardians and Kurunegala Crusaders will compete for total prize money worth Rs. 3.45 million with the winners taking away Rs. One million and runner-up Rs. 750,000 in addition to attractive individual prizes. A total of 60 players representing various clubs of the country are taking part.

Milinda Siriwardena, Dinesh Chandimal, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Lahiru Thirimanne and Mahela Udawatte will captain the respective teams.

The curtain raiser of the tournament will be between Colombo Commandos and Galle Rangers at 10 am today.

Prior to the commencement of the tournament a grand opening ceremony has been arranged with Sri Lanka Cricket president Thilanga Sumathipala declaring open the tournament by the release of balloons.

Two matches will be played each day, Morning Session and Evening Session. The Morning Session match will start at 10.00 am and the Evening Session at 2.00pm. In a match where play is delayed or interrupted, the hours of play shall be extended by 15 minutes in day games.

The final on February 5 will be played under lights commencing 7.00 pm.

A press conference to launch the tournament was held at the SLC headquarters yesterday with SLC president Thilanga Sumathipala, Vice President K.Mathivanan, CEO Ashley de Silva, Tournament Director Jayantha Paranathala and the captains of the five teams in attendance.

Seya Sadevmi murder Case to be heard daily

The hearing of the lawsuit with respect to the killing of Seya Sadevmi in Kotadeniyawa will be continued from yesterday. It was taken up in the presence of Negombo High Court Judge Champa Janaki Jayaratne. The Attorney General have filed four indictments against Saman Jayalalth, the chief suspect in the murder case.

Earlier, the Minuwangoda Magistrate was apprised that DNA samples found on Seya Sadevmi match Saman Jayalath. Seya Sadevmi was found strangled to death on September 13th last year while she was reported missing from her home at Kotadeniyawa in Divulapitiya on the previous day.

A schoolboy and a father of one child were initially apprehended but they were acquitted of the charges as their DNA reports did not match.

Witness in Embilipitiya case speaks

Anil Sanjeewa, who is said to be an eye witness of the incident in which Sumith Prasanna was killed during a clash with the police, appealed the IGP to hold an unbiased investigation into the case.

Sanjeewa claims that he heard a conversation between several police officers that occurred soon after Sumith Prasanna sustained life-threatening injuries during the clash.

“I was in the third floor. In fear of my life, I didn’t open the door of my shop. I heard women screaming and begging for help,” he added.

However, earlier police Spokesman ASP Ruwan Gunasekara told reporters that “When police officers were attempting to arrest the individuals behaving in a disruptive manner, one person jumped from the third floor of the building through glasses.”

The investigation into the Embilipitiya incident has been handed over to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), the Inspector General of Police (IGP) N.K. Illangakoon said earlier.

The clash involving a group of policemen and several civilians attending a function at a residence resulted in the death of the youth and injuries to several others. The Police Chief stated that the decision was taken based on the instructions of the Attorney General (AG).

HRW reacts to President's statement on foreign Judges

The Human Rights Watch has urged the Sri Lankan government to fulfill its commitments to the United Nations Human Rights Council by ensuring that foreign judges and prosecutors play a significant role in the mandated accountability mechanism for wartime abuses.

On January 21, 2016, President Maithripala Sirisena told the BBC, contrary to Sri Lanka‘s council commitments, that he will “never agree to international involvement,” saying “[w]e have more than enough specialists, experts and knowledgeable people in our country to solve our internal issues.

“The Sri Lankan government sought international involvement to ensure justice and accountability so there’s no excuse for backtracking now,” said Brad Adams, Asia director.

“President Sirisena needs to understand that international participation in a war crimes tribunal was not a vague promise to the UN but a firm commitment to the thousands of Sri Lankans who suffered during the country’s long civil war.”

President Sirisena’s statement comes just weeks before a scheduled visit to the country by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein.

The high commissioner’s office released a report detailing wartime abuses by both sides, calling for a “hybrid” justice mechanism given the shortcomings of domestic institutions to ensure impartial investigations and witness protection, and the Sri Lankan government’s failure to take meaningful accountability measures since the war ended in May 2009.

The 2015 Human Rights Council resolution affirms the importance of participation in a justice mechanism of “Commonwealth and other foreign judges … and authorized prosecutors and investigators.”

Sri Lanka tops South Asia in human development

Sri Lanka has maintained its high ranking in human development. But the country’s performance in terms of average annual human development index (HDI) growth rate during 1990-2014 was lower than many other South Asian countries.

These findings are among the highlights of the Global Human Development Report (HDR) 2015 released by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) here on Thursday.

Sri Lanka has been placed at the 73rd rank with an HDI value of 0.757. In the previous year’s report, it occupied the 74th place. Since the end of the civil war in 2009, the country’s rank went up by five. The report, which studied a total of 188 countries and territories, has determined the HDI values by assessing long-term progress in three basic dimensions of human development—a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living.

According to the report that has been prepared on the basis of 2014 data, Sri Lanka has been placed at the 73rd rank with the HDI value of 0.757. In the previous year’s report, it occupied the 74th place. Since the end of the civil war in 2009, the country’s rank went up by five.

The report, which has studied a total of 188 countries and territories, has determined the HDI values by assessing long-term progress in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living.

According to the document, the region of South Asia includes Iran too, apart from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Maldives.

While Iran is ahead of Sri Lanka, standing at 69th rank, the Maldives is ranked 104th. India and Bhutan fall under the category of medium human development countries and Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan come under the group of low human development countries. India is placed at 130th rank and Pakistan, 147th. As for the growth rate during 1990-2014, South Asia’s figure was 1.38, the highest among all regions.

The UNDP took 1990 into account as it was from that year that the series of global HDI reports began. In the context of Sri Lanka, too, the year was significant as the Eelam War resumed in June 1990 after the withdrawal of the Indian Peacekeeping Force three months earlier.

Within the region of South Asia, Afghanistan tops the list with the value of 1.89 for 1990-2014 followed by Bangladesh (1.64), Nepal (1.49) and India (1.48). Sri Lanka’s score was 0.83.

Thangavel Palanivel, Chief Economist for Asia-Pacific, UNDP Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, attributes this situation to the “size effect” and points out that countries traditionally enjoying higher economic and human development cannot grow much beyond a point. This was why Sri Lanka, which was better placed than many other countries in the region even in the 1970s and 1980s, posted lower growth rate during the 25-year-long period.

In 1990, Sri Lanka’s HDI value was 0.620 whereas the region’s figure was 0.437. In 2014, the region’s tally was 0.607. (The Hindu)

 2015 human development index (HDI)

Underage girl abducted by lesbian in Avissawella

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has appointed a committee to look into the recent incident in Avissawella involving two females being arrested by the Police on the grounds of their sexual orientation.

The Police are reported to have arrested the duo while at a bus stand on a tipoff of them being lesbians or in a lesbian relationship, received from three-wheel drivers nearby.

When queried about the status of the case involving the couple and what sort of legal representation they were presently receiving, President of the BASL, President's Counsel Geoffrey Alagaratnam said that he had yet to receive the report concerning the matter and would be able to comment about the matter today (25).

Meanwhile, the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) informed that they had done nothing yet pertaining to the matter.

Media Spokesman of the HRCSL, Human Rights Commissioner Saliya Peiris said that they had not received a complaint regarding the matter.

"We will have to look into the circumstances. We take certain major issues up on our own but elsewhere we have to receive a complaint," he added.

Police Media Spokesman, Assistant Superintendent of Police Ruwan Gunasekera said that one of the two females had been arrested on the offence of the abduction of an underage person, below the age of 16 years, without the permission of the parents.

"It is an offence under the Penal Code. They were not taken in under loitering. One female was 19-years-old while the other was 15 years and nine months. The underage female has started an affair with the older female. They were lesbians. Avissawella Police received information about them on 12 January after 11:00 p.m. and had subsequently arrested them. 

When checking, it was revealed that both were residents of Meerigama. They were then handed over to the Meerigama Police who produced them before the Attanagalla Magistrate. They were granted bail. The underage girl has been given to the parents. The case will next be taken up on 2 February," he mentioned.

Singapore Police released lankan politician

The Singapore Police on Wednesday concluded its finding on the CCTV video clip that Sri Lanka’s Central Provincial Councillor Manel Bandara had not committed an act of sexual harassment  in touching a Singaporean woman on her shoulder during a study tour, well informed sources revealed.

Bandara was taken into custody following a complaint to the police that the Councillor reportedly harassed her sexually while coming down a stairway at a hotel a fortnight ago.

The Councillor’s passport and travel documents were seized by the Singapore Police until investigations concluded. He was allowed to return to Sri Lanka last Thursday (21).

Bandara had told the Police that he patted her on her shoulder as a foreigner to say goodbye as a gesture of goodwill. He told Nation that the media had blown the incident out of proportion to display it as a ‘sex scandal’ or ‘sex abuse’. ‘I have asked the Media Minister to initiate an investigation into those media reports aimed at tarnishing my image’, he added.

The Police in Singapore viewed the CCTV video clip at length on Wednesday with software experts and concluded that the Councillor while parting at the end of the stairway had patted the woman on the shoulder to bid goodbye.

The video clip had provided evidence that both parties had been waving their hands while parting.

Asked whether he would file action against the woman for making a false complaint, Bandara asked ‘Why should I go all the way to Singapore to waste my money on a useless exercise?’

Lankan politicians Pay BEST RATES FOR FOREIGN GIRLS

Sri Lankan politicians who visit high class brothels operating under the guise of Spas in the Colombo city are reported to be paying the best rates for Russian, Thai and Indonesian women who are engaged in the oldest profession at those brothels, highly placed police sources revealed.

Asked whether any ministers too were involved in the purchase of these women for sexual needs, a senior police spokesman said, “Yes… these women revealed some names of ministers and leading local government politicians under interrogation”.

He added that these women had been taken to luxury hotels and apartments in the city owned by those politicians.

A considerable number of women from those countries are now in Colombo, employed as Spa Therapists and the police have found that most of them have arrived on tourist visas.

Several Indonesian women overstaying such visas while engaging in prostitution had been rounded up by the police and grilled.

Police said these women under interrogation have confessed that Sri Lankan politicians contacted them through certain channels and paid best rates demanded by them. ‘Some have been paid US$ 1,000-1,500 per full night from 9.00pm to 5.00 am the following day with all facilities provided at  three star and five star hotels’, police disclosed.

Police have arrested some of these foreign prostitutes and had produced them in court. ‘We have also informed the respective  foreign missions in Colombo to ensure that they are deported early after punishment is meted out by court’, he added.

Sri Lanka Exams Timetable for 2016

The timetable for key examinations to be held during 2016 was announced by the Examinations Department today. Accordingly the GCE Advanced Level Examination will be held from August 2 to  27, the Grade 5 Scholarship examination on August 21 and the GCE Ordinary Level Examination from  December 6 to 27.

Defender vehicle colour changed by Yoshith Rajapaksa

Colombo Chief Magistrate Gihan Pilapitiya yesterday ordered the CID to probe the alleged misuse of a Defender vehicle belonging to the Red Cross Society, for the commission of a crime, being painted over in a different colour to avoid recognition.

Court has learned that this has been allegedly authorized by a former Minister of Social Services. The vehicle had belonged to the 'Siriliya Saviya' project of former First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa.

The Chief Magistrate also ordered the CID to record a statement from the former minister who had allegedly recommended the Defender vehicle bearing number plate WP KA-0642 to the 'Siriliya Saviya' project headed by the former First Lady.

The CID also informed Court that the colour of the said vehicle was changed on the advice of Yoshitha Rajapaksa, the second son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The CID also found that the vehicle in question has not been used for any social service activity.

Following information received by the CID about two Defender vehicles bearing registration numbers WPKE 3671 and WPKA 0642 at Habarakada junction, Homagama, a probe was launched on 18 February 2015, the CID told Court.

Afterwards, the CID had received a report concerning the two Defender vehicles before discovering that the said vehicles had been registered under the name of the Director General of the Red Cross Society at its offices at No. 104, Dharmapala Mawatha, Colombo 7.

The CID then informed Court that when the vehicles in question had been registered under the name of the Red Cross Director General their suspicions had been aroused when they found the vehicles parked at a private residence.

The CID had then gone to 'Siriliya Saviya', Habarakada, Homagama address where its officials had spotted the black Defender bearing number WPKA 0642 parked there.

Two men, named Lathika Kumuduni Perera and Simson Perera, had resided at the said address. More information shed light on the fact that the head of the household was Wasantha Kariyawasam who was the transport and service manager employed by Red Cross Society.

The CID had also uncovered through its inquiries that Lathika Kumuduni Perera was the wife of Kariyawasam while Simson Perera had been a Red Cross Society driver.

More investigations revealed that the Defender, bearing number WPKA 0642, had belonged to the Red Cross and it had been handed over to the 'Siriliya Saviya' project on 11 August 2011, upon a request by its Secretary Seetha Kalyani Kumari to the former Minister of Social Service, Felix Perera.

The CID informed Court that Red Cross CEO, Jagath Bandu Abeysinghe had said in a statement that upon a written request by former Minister Felix Perera on 27 July 2011 a white Defender had been gifted to the 'Siriliya Saviya' project to carry out its activities.

The Red Cross Chairman had told the CID in his statement that the vehicle had been brought back after the 2015 Presidential poll and that its colour change raised suspicions and that he was not aware of how or why it had taken place.

Though the vehicle in question did not belong to the Presidential Secretariat, its maintenance and pumping of fuel had been carried out through the latter, inquiries had exposed, the CID told the Court.

Secretary to the 'Siriliya Saviya' project, Seetha Kalyani Kumari had acknowledged in a statement that though she had asked for the Defender vehicle it had at no stage been used for the 'Sirilya Saviya' project or its related activities, the CID also told Court.

A constable attached to the PSD, Chathura de Silva giving a statement had told the CID that the colour of the vehicle had been changed to blue on the advice of Yoshitha Rajapaksa before it was once again painted black at a garage in Kollupitiya, on the instructions of an individual named Deen who had served as a Marketing Executive at the CSN television station, the CID further told Court.

The CID also tyold Court that the Defender had first been used by Yoshitha Rajapaksa before it was used by Deen who was a close friend of Yoshitha, the CID had uncovered.

The CID then informed the Court that the Defender vehicle has not been used for any social service activity.

The CID then told Court that the colour of the said vehicle had been changed twice with no logical reason and the costs for the colour changes had been borne by the Presidential Secretariat.The CID then told Court that it was conducting further investigations to ascertain why the colour of the vehicle was changed twice and whether the vehicle had met with an accident or whether it had been repaired and for what purpose the vehicle had been used.

The CID then stated that they also had sought reports in this connection from the Motor Traffic Commissioner and the Government Analyst.

The Chief Magistrate who ordered the Motor Traffic Commissioner and the Government Analyst to produce the reports sought by the CID in this connection, ordered the CID to submit to Court a progress report on the inquiries on 3 March.

Chaminda Vaas to help Irish World T20 campaign

Former Sri Lanka bowler Chaminda Vaas will help Ireland's preparations for the upcoming ICC World Twenty20.Vaas took 755 wickets for his country, playing in 111 Tests and 322 one-day matches.

Since retiring in 2012, the 41-year-old has worked as a bowling consultant for Sri Lanka and New Zealand.Vaas' short-term contract will begin next month and will continue until the end of Ireland's World T20 campaign, which starts in March.

"It's great to have Chaminda with us through the build-up as well as during the World T20," Ireland coach John Bracewell said.

"His ability to get wickets in all forms of the game especially on the sub-continent was extraordinary. This experience will be invaluable to our bowling group."

Vaas said he was relishing the prospect of sharing the knowledge and experience he had picked up.

"I've played with and against some of the guys during my time in county cricket with Middlesex and Northants," Vaas added.

"There's a lot of talent and experience in the squad which I'm confident I can add to."

Vaas holds the record for the best bowling figures in one-day internationals with his 8-19 off eight overs against Zimbabwe in 2001.

The Irish will open their World T20 campaign in India against Oman on 8 March before going on to face Bangladesh (11 March) and the Netherlands (14 March) in the qualifying group, with only the winners going on to the Super 10 stage.

Prior to the World T20, the Irish will have a busy programme of games in Australia and Abu Dhabi which includes the four-day Intercontinental Cup game against Papua New Guinea, which begins in Townsville in Queensland on 31 January.

'Gammanpila allegedly sold property valued at Rs. 190 million'

R.P.L.I. Perera, the Power of Attorney holder for wealthy foreign businessman Brian Shaddick, lodged a complaint with the Police yesterday alleging that MP Udaya Gammanpila had fraudulently sold a property valued over millions of rupees belonging to the businessman.

The property including a tea factory named 'Brombil' had allegedly been sold for Rs. 190 million to another company by forging fake documents.

The complaint had been made while investigations are going on over an incident where Gammanpila had fraudulently sold shares of the Pan Asia Bank valued at Rs. 110 million belonging to the same businessman, when he was the Power of Attorney holder for Shaddick. Investigations have reached the final stage.

The complaint had been made against MP Gammanpila, the Brombil Tea Factory and the Director Board. All documents pertaining to the alleged fraud have been submitted to investigative bodies by the holder of the Power of Attorney of the businessman.

Perera said that Brian Shaddick was an Australian national. Two Police officers had gone to Australia to investigate the selling of shares of the Pan Asia Bank. He added that Shaddick was ready to fly to Sri Lanka at any time to support the investigations.

‘New Sri Lanka Freedom Front’ - Leadership for Gotabaya

Electing a leader for the new front which is to be created by the joint opposition, has been one of the main topics of political discussions recently, the sources said.

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s name has been considered to the position, said the sources. If the request is rejected by Rajapaksa, the Former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa will be nominated for the leadership.

Leaders of the joint opposition have stated that majority of public would only assist the two Rajapaksa brothers, pointing out that most of the people are fascinated by them.

Therefore, the attention has been given to build a new political force against the government, associated with two Rajapaksas. It is reported that discussions have been held to give Rajapaksas more opportunities to interact with the public.

Former President and Former Defence Secretary have joined the ongoing negotiations with the joint opposition, combined with several members of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, National Freedom Front, Piwithuru Hela Urumaya, Democratic Left Front, the Lanka Sama Samaja Party and Sri Lanka Communist Party.

‘New Sri Lanka Freedom Front’ is reported to be the suggested name for the new party.

Welgama says that Rajapaksa Should Lead SLFP At LG Polls

UPFA MP and former Minister Kumara Welgama said former President Mahinda Rajapaksa should lead the Sri Lanka Freedom Party campaign at the forthcoming Local Government elections.

Speaking to BBC he said that he was prepared to accept President Maithripala Sirisena since he is an elected leader. However, the people are with Rajapaksa, Welgama also insisted.

Therefore the campaign should be led by Rajapaksa, he said.

Welgama also warned that he will take a serious political decision if the party did not accept this proposal.

The Rajpaksa camp has been discussing the launch of a new political front for weeks. However, the former President has rejected that a new front will be formed.

Kidney racket: Indian police file cases against 6 Lankan doctors

The police in Nalgonda, in Telangana, India, have filed cases against six Sri Lankan doctors who are allegedly involved in a kidney racket, The Hindu said.

The newspaper said that the doctors have been charged of conducting paid kidney transplants in violation of ethics.

Dr. Madhava, Dr. Monik and Dr. Sadhana, working at the Nawaloka Hospital, Dr. Chamila (Hemas Hospital), Dr. Niroshini (Lanka Hospital) and Dr. Habeeba Saheef (Western Hospital), have allegedly performed the 60 transplants, the Nalgonda police said.

Police recently arrested the kingpin in the kidney racket, Suresh Prajapathi (36), and two of his cronies, who facilitated 60 kidney transplants.

The police also arrested Prajapathi’s accomplice Dilip Umedamal Chouhan (31), who used to help conduct health tests on donors at various diagnostic centres in Ahmedabad.

 The Ministry of Health has launched a fresh investigation into the alleged kidney transplant racket operated from India.

The Department of Medical Services in the ministry has been instructed to conduct a full investigation on the matter and submit a report, Secretary to the Ministry of Health Anura Jayawickrama told the Daily News yesterday. As a temporary measure, the ministry has also suspended approval for any organ transplant procedures, he said. Any transplant procedure has to obtain prior approval from the Ministry of Health.

"The ministry is looking at establishing a formal system to give approval for transplants and till such time giving approval has been suspended, this is imposed especially in the case of foreigners," a highly ranked source from the Ministry told the the Daily News.

This is the second time an investigation is being commissioned on the matter. In 2014, the Health Ministry commissioned an inspection of all private hospitals in the country following accounts of illegal kidney transplants being carried out in private hospitals reported in both Indian and local papers.

The Indian media this week reported on fresh arrests on the alleged kidney transplant racket. Reports also said that six Sri Lankan doctors attached to four private hospitals are involved in the racket.According to Indian Daily, The Hindu, all transplants had taken place in four Sri Lankan hospitals while all donors and recipients involved in the racket are from India.

The kingpin of the racket, Suresh Prajapathi an Indian based in Ahmedabad was arrested on Tuesday. A fee of Indian rupees Rs.28 lakhs to Rs.30 lakhs has been charged for a transplant the paper reported. "he kept Rs.5 lakhs and paid up the remaining money to the donor, doctors and others. Prajapathi amassed Rs. 3 crore in the trade, bought a house investing Rs. 1.4 crore, an office costing Rs. 30 lakhs, and furniture worth Rs.27 lakhs," The Hindu said.

Meanwhile the Indian High Commssion in Sri Lanka said no offcials in Inda had made contact with them regarding investigations.

ICC suspends former Sri Lanka player Jayananda Warnaweera

Sri Lankan pitch curator Jayananda Warnaweera has been suspended for three years by the International Cricket Council after he failed to take part in an anti-corruption investigation.

Warnaweera, who played international cricket for Sri Lanka 16 times between 1986 and 1994 and latterly worked at Galle International Stadium, was asked to co-operate with the ICC anti-corruption unit (ACU) in an ongoing probe.

The 55-year-old failed to attend two interviews with the ACU scheduled in September and October and did not disclose documents when requested, the ICC said in a statement.

Warnaweera was charged with "failing, without compelling justification, to co-operate with any reasonable investigation carried out by the ACU in relation to possible breaches of the anti-corruption code, including failure to provide information and/or documentation requested by the ACU that may be relevant to such investigation" under article 2.4.6 of the ICC anti-corruption code.

The ICC, which has not revealed full details of its investigation, said Warnaweera failed to respond to the charge and was "deemed to have admitted that he committed the offence" and "waived his right to a hearing, and to have acceded to the imposition of a sanction within the range specific in the notice of charge".

ACU chairman Sir Ronnie Flanagan said: "The ICC takes no pleasure in imposing a suspension, but this decision clearly illustrates what the code means to the ICC and how seriously we take matters that relate to corruption.

"It should also act as a reminder to participants of the need to comply with their obligations under the code. The ICC has a zero-tolerance approach towards corruption and it will not hesitate in taking such decisions in its endeavour to eliminate this menace from the sport."

(News Agencies)

New Rates for calls, SMSs from February

Sri Lanka’s telecom regulator, Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (TRC) has issued instructions to telcos to scrap the existing two rate structure for on-net and off-net voice calls and replace it with a new common floor rate with effect from February 01, 2016.

While the new floor rates have been set below the existing floor rates for voice calls taken outside the network, the voice rates within the network and the SMS rates have been raised. (See table for the new and existing rates) The TRC said the floor rate revision was made in response to submissions made by the telcos and would only be applicable for new connections issued from the effective date.

New floor rates could be a move by the telcos to minimize the impact of declining margins amid the substitution of traditional voice/text services by low margin data services.

It may have also been prompted by the thumping one-off taxes slapped on telcos by the Interim Budget in January 2015.

However, the new floor rates are unlikely to have a significant impact on their margins as the voice market is long saturated in Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, the letter sent to the chief executives of telcos by the newly appointed TRC Director General, Sunil S. Sirisena on January 5, 2016 read,  “…the Commission has decided to appoint a committee to study the Commission approved tariff plans which were below the  determined common floor rates and make recommendations as to whether such tariff plans should be revised in line with the common floor rates or allow to continue as it is”.


The TRC in 2010 brought in floor rates for the first time to safeguard the industry when its viability was threatened by the intense price war among service providers, which led to price undercutting to grab market share from each other in a largely saturated mobile telephony market.

However, this measure only temporarily improved telco fortunes as the rapid take off of cheap data services subsequently began to eat into their margins.

Sri Lanka’s telco market is one of the most     overcrowded markets in the world with five operators serving a 21 million population. Fitch Ratings this week revised the outlook on the Lankan telcos to ‘Stable’ from ‘Negative’ due to scrapping of recurring taxes imposed on them from the Interim Budget in 2015, which could have diluted the industry Earnings Before Interest Tax Depreciation and Amortization margin by 6 – 7 percent.

Fitch Ratings in March 2015 revised down the outlook to ‘Negative’ from ‘Stable’ due to a host of hostile, one-off and retrospective taxes imposed on the telcos.

However, Fitch Ratings in November 2014 said the outlook on the Lankan telcos could be revised to ‘Positive’ (from ‘Stable’), either if industry consolidation results in improvement in profitability or the regulator’s introduction of a data tariff floor, easing the pressure on profitability.

Probe On Facebook scam in Sri Lanka

Colombo Chief Magistrate Gihan Pilapitiya yesterday ordered the CID to launch a probe into an organized gang which is alleged to be earning millions of rupees in hush money through a Facebook scam whereby nude photographs and videos of selected men have been taken prior to them being threatened with 'exposure' on Facebook if the demanded sum was not paid.

The head of the computer division of the CID, Chief Inspector S.K. Senaratne told Court that the police probe into this racket had begun after it came to light that an Army Officer had paid a sum of Rs 210,000 as hush money.

The Army Officer had received a Facebook invitation from a 'Friend' on Facebook and the unsuspecting Army Officer had continued to chat with the person who had posed off as a woman.

By and by they had continued to forge a close relationship through their respective Facebook accounts until the woman had one day asked him for nude photographs and videos of himself..

Afterwards the complainant had trusted the person with whom he had continued to chat on his Facebook account and had sent nude photos and videos of himself through the Whatsapp facility on his cell phone.

The CID then informed Court that the complainant had been threatened with exposure of his nude photos and videos and yielded to the demand of depositing Rs 210,000 at various stages.

Following extensive inquiries the CID had then uncovered an organized gang been responsible for the blackmail whereby unsuspecting males have been threatened with the exposure of nude photos and videos on Facebook, if they fail to deposit the demanded ransom money.

The CID was then ordered by Chief Magistrate Pilapitiya to continue with its investigations especially seeking details of money thus deposited by other clients and also to seek further details from ATM machines and through CCTV footage etc.

Sri Lanka eyes U.S. for more tourists

The Sri Lankan government on Tuesday said that it intends to undertake a tourism promotion campaign in the United States in order to attract more western tourists.

In a Foreign Ministry statement released here, quoting Sri Lanka's Ambassador to the U.S. Prasad Kariyawasam, it said that although the U.S. was presently ranked as the ninth source of tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka, with more focused attention to U.S. travelers looking for new and unique destinations, the potential for growth in the U.S. market was immense.

Leading international travel magazines have already ranked Sri Lanka as a top destination for 2016 with many tour companies offering trips to the island nation this year.

The country's tourism industry has become the leading foreign exchange earner and the new government led by President Maithripala Sirisena intends to achieve at least four million tourists' target by 2020.

Statistics recently released by the country's Tourism Development Authority showed that the Sri Lanka had received almost 1.8 million tourists in 2015, up 17.8 percent from the previous year.

The increase was largely due to an increase in the number of Chinese tourists visiting the island nation in the recent years.

World oldest man Yasutaro Koide dies aged 112 in Japan

The world’s oldest man has died at the age of 112 in the Japanese city of Nagoya, local officials say.Yasutaro Koide, who was born on 13 March 1903, was officially named the oldest man by Guinness World Records in August this year.

At the time he was quoted as saying his secret to long life was not smoking or drinking, not to overdo things and to “live with joy”.

Officials said he died of heart failure and pneumonia early on Tuesday.It is not yet clear who succeeds him as the oldest man.

The title of world’s oldest person is held by American woman Susannah Mushatt Jones, who is 116 years old.She took the title last year after the death of Misao Okawa in Japan at the age of 117.

The oldest person who has ever lived according to Guinness was Jeanne Calment of France, who lived 122 years and 164 days. She died in August 1997.

Female MPs can complain to Speaker about Sexual harassment

Speaker Karu Jayasuriya has requested female Parliamentarians to inform him if they are subjected to any kind of sexual or other harassment, the Speaker’s office said yesterday.

It said that the Speaker would not hesitate to take tough action against those individuals, found guilty in this regard irrespective of the party or the positions they hold.

However, there were no complaints to the Speaker or any other Parliament officials about this as yet. The statement also said that the Speaker would look into the matter further by himself.

Discussions between Bodu Bala Sena & President Maithri

The closed-door discussions between the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) and President Maithripala Sirisena this evening had been successful, BBS General Secretary Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera said.

The BBS organisation said it discussed several issues with the President.

“We have explained to the President about the threat of global Islamic extremists to Buddhists and Muslims in Sri Lanka,” he said.

“When discussed about Government’s plan to bring an Act in the Parliament, which can take control of the activities of Buddhist monks, the President said it should be discussed with the Chief Sangha Nayakas and would let the results known to all in the Sangha hierarchy,” he said.

“About 4,500 families in five remote villages in the Bogas Weva region in Vavuniya, who had been resettled by the previous government, have now started to get back to their previous places,” Ven. Gnanasara Thera said.

“The attention given to them by the Government and the influence from several Muslim Ministers and threats from Tamil separatists resulted in the villagers returning to their former places,” he said.

“Those villages have been set up by the help of tri forces. I am pleased to inform that the President had informed the Army Commander to take immediate action regarding the issue. We hope the President will take fruitful decisions in the future,” the Thera added.

“We will conduct an inspection tour to the Bogas Weva villages within the next few days and we hope President will pay more attention to Sinhala people as he paid attention to Muslims and people of other religions,” he said. (Chaturanga Pradeep)

PC Member Grilled For Alleged Groping In Singapore

One of the Central Provincial Council members who had gone on a 10 day study tour to Singapore few days ago had been taken in for questioning by the Singaporean Police for allegedly groping a woman inside a lift at the hotel they had stayed during their visit, reliable sources said.

All other PC members except for the member concerned had returned to the country early Saturday completing their tour, according to the Council sources.

Council Chairman L.D.Nimalasiri who had accompanied the members to Singapore confirmed the incident of groping and the police taking him to the police station. However, he said the incident was accidental and not serious and the police did not take the member into custody but just took him to the police station. He also said that the member had stayed back in Singapore for a personal need.

Council Secretary of the Central Provincial Council T.N.S. Bandara Tennakoon said that he was neither aware of such an incident nor had he an idea whether the member in question had returned to the country or not