Treasury Bonds scam: AG recommends criminal, civil action

The Prime Minister's Office said, the Attorney General (AG) has recommended that legal action could be instituted against former Governor of the Central Bank Arjun Mahendran and the firm Perpetual Treasuries as criminal as well as civil cases related to the CB Bond scam.

AG Jayanthi Jayasuriya had submitted the aforementioned recommendations after PM Ranil Wickremesinghe had forwarded COPE and the Auditor General's reports on the CB Bond scam to him for his perusal and recommendations.

A source at the PM's Office stated the AG's report had been forwarded to PM Wickremesinghe on 5 December and further action will only be taken on the instructions of the PM.

SPC minister vows to resign after budget defeat

Southern Provincial Council Agriculture Minister U.G.D. Ariyathilaka says he will resign after his ministry budget defeated at the Provincial Council.

Tense situation at Hambantota Port

A tense situation has been reported at the Hambantota Port as navy personnel intervened to disperse workers who are protesting and blocking ship movements. 

The agitation has reportedly also hindered navy operations from the port and as a result navy personnel had proceeded to remove the workers blocking the shipping passage. 

Employees of the Magampura Port Management Company (MPMC) launched a strike demanding that they be recruited to the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA). Around 483 of the employees also engaged in a protest fast. 

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa says he made a request to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday to intervene and resolve the issues of the protesting workers. The Prime Minister had immediately called Minister Malik Samarawickrama on the phone and asked him to resolve that issue, he said. 

The protest was launched just days before a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Government of Sri Lanka and China Merchant Holdings Limited (CMHL) on the framework for the revitalization of the Hambantota Harbour.

14 Petitions Against E-news editor

Attorney-at-Law, Owitigala Vithanage Madura Vithanage, of Kalapaluwawa, Rajagiriya, yesterday filed fourteen petitions in the Supreme Court, complaining that Don Pradeep Sandaruwan Senadheera formerly of Malabe and currently in London, had published fourteen web articles defamatory and contemptuous of judges.

The petitioner requested the court to summon the editor Pradeep Senadheera of the e-news web and to charge him for contempt of the Supreme Court.

The petitions added that Senadheera had acted in contravention of Articles, 105/3 and 111(c), 1 and 2 of the Constitution of Sri Lanka.

The publisher, editor of those web articles should be present in court to answer summons.

Among the respondents are the Attorney General, and the President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka.

The instructing Attorneys are Neelakandan and Neelakandan.

73-year-old Woman sits GCE O/L

A unique feature at this year’s GCE O/L examination was a septuagenarian sitting it. Information and Communication Technology.

She is 73-year-old N.S. Kalyani, a retired CWE employee and a resident of Nadugala, Matara, Information and Communication Technology.

She told The Island that she had sat the exam not with a view to seeking employment but to keeping abreast with the new trends and developments in society.

Kalyani said that she hoped to sit the same examination offering Electronics and Hindi language as subjects next year.

Largest Cocaine haul in South Asia

About 800 kilograms of cocaine with an estimated value of Rs.12 billion was detected on board an Indian-bound vessel docked in the Colombo Harbour today following a tip off received by the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB).

DIG Ajith Rohana told a news conference that the cocaine which was concealed inside a container loaded with teak logs was reportedly the largest quantity of cocaine detected so far in Sri Lanka and the South Asia.

“The ship was bound to India from Ecuador via Colombo. The ship, ss Fabiola had left Ecuador on October 2 and had reached Belgium on October 20 and was said to be on its way to India through a circuitous sea route,” he said.

The raid was carried out by 30 PNB personnel led by PNB Director SSP Kamal Silva under the directions of Police Chief Pujith Jayasundera and DIG Nandana Munasinghe

Grade 5 Scholarship Cut-off Marks Released

The Ministry of Education today released the cut-off marks for the Grade 5 Scholarship examination.

Sinhala Medium – Boys’ Schools 

Royal College, Colombo – 184 Dharmaraja College, Kandy – 181 Ananda College, Colombo – 180 Maliyadeva College, Kurunegala – 180 Richmond College, Galle – 179 Nalanda College, Colombo – 178 Kingswood College, Kandy – 178 D.S. Senanayake College, Colombo – 176 Isipathana College, Colombo – 173 Thurstan College, Colombo – 171 

Sinhala Medium - Girls’ Schools 

Visakha Vidyalaya, Colombo – 184 Mahamaya Girls’ College, Kandy – 181 Devi Balika Vidyalaya, Colombo – 179 Maliyadeva Girls’ College, Kurunegala – 179 Southlands College, Galle – 177 Sirimavo Bandaranaike Vidyalaya, Colombo – 176 

Sinhala Medium Mixed Schools 

 Dharmapala Vidyalaya, Pannipitiya - 174 Seevali Madya Maha Vidyalaya, Ratnapura - 174 Rajapaksa Madya Maha Vidyalaya, Weerakatiya - 172 Taxila Madya Maha Vidyalaya, Horana - 171 Pinnawala Madya Maha Vidyalaya, Rambukkana - 170

INTERPOL Turns Down Red Notice Request

The international police, INTERPOL, has turned down a Red notice request to arrest the founder and Chief Editor of Lanka E-News Sandaruwan Senadheera.

An arrest warrant was recently issued for Sandaruwan Senadheera. Gampaha Chief Magistrate ordered that the warrant be issued via INTERPOL since Senadheera resides overseas.

Sandaruwan Senadheera has been accused of contempt of court and a complaint had been filed against him.

However the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) informed court today that INTERPOL has refused to issue the Red notice as charges have not been filed in court.