News

Ven. Ampitiye Sumanarathana Thero was granted bail by the Batticaloa Magistrate’s Court today (11), following his arrest by Batticaloa Police.

The court ordered his release on two personal bail bonds of Rs. 200,000 each.

He was taken into custody on September 7 over an alleged incident involving the obstruction of duties carried out by officials at the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau office in Batticaloa.

The court order allows the Buddhist monk to remain on bail while proceedings relating to the incident continue.

Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa appeared before the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) today (11) to provide a statement as part of an ongoing investigation into the controversial MiG aircraft transaction.

Rajapaksa had been summoned by investigators to answer questions relating to the deal, which remains under investigation by the financial crimes authorities.

The development follows the appearance of former Air Force Commander Air Chief Marshal Roshan Goonetileke before the FCID yesterday (10).

Goonetileke was questioned for more than five hours in connection with the same investigation before leaving the FCID premises.

The statements from the former President and the former Air Force Commander form part of the continuing inquiry into the MiG aircraft deal.

Sri Lanka will not seek an increase in electricity tariffs for the upcoming quarter, Energy Minister Anura Karunathilaka told Parliament today (11).

The Minister attributed the decision partly to recent rainfall levels, which exceeded expectations and helped reduce the pressure on electricity generation costs.

He said the improved availability of water resources had allowed authorities to manage generation expenses to some extent, making a tariff increase unnecessary at this stage.

Minister Karunathilaka also assured Parliament that arrangements have been made to maintain an uninterrupted electricity supply during the first three months of next year.

He said the Ministry of Energy has already implemented the measures required to support continuous power generation and supply during that period.

Leader of the House Minister Bimal Rathnayake commended Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa in Parliament yesterday (10) for his early warnings regarding the severe impacts of the El Niño and La Niña climate phenomena on Sri Lanka.

Rathnayake acknowledged that Premadasa had raised critical concerns regarding potential water, food, and energy crises nearly six months before the United Nations Climate Organisation issued its official global confirmation on June 2.

The government expressed its respect for the opposition leader's proactive stance, noting that continuous legislative debate on impending climate threats remains essential for national preparedness.

Demanding full government transparency under Standing Order 27(2), Premadasa called for the immediate public release of official forecasts produced by the Meteorology Department and submitted to the cabinet.

He noted that while internal estimates point to a 63 percent likelihood of severe impact, global data from the World Meteorological Organization indicates the probability could reach 80 percent.

Highlighting the creation of a special ministerial subcommittee and an officials committee on June 22, 2026, Premadasa urged the government to publish district-wise data from the Disaster Management Centre detailing drought-affected populations.

He raised specific concerns over whether the approaching October and November monsoon would trigger compound disasters including floods and landslides, demanding early warning systems for high-risk zones such as the Northern, Eastern, Badulla, Monaragala, Ampara, Hambantota, and Batticaloa districts.

The opposition leader also questioned the economic fallout on public utilities and agriculture.

Premadasa requested detailed disclosures regarding Mahaweli reservoir levels, the financial burden of generating expensive thermal power to cover depleted hydropower reserves, and the resulting pressure on monthly household electricity bills.

Turning to the agricultural sector, he pressed the government to reveal the exact extent of crop damage across paddy fields, demanding confirmation on whether affected farmers had received adequate compensation, insurance payouts, seed paddy, and fertilizer subsidies ahead of the upcoming Maha cultivation season.

Abdul Razak Mohomed Basik, the father of suspected major drug trafficker Shiran Basik, has been arrested by the Central Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) in connection with an investigation into a property valued at around Rs. 30 million.

Police said the arrest was made under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

The investigation reportedly concerns an apartment at a luxury residential complex in the Gampaha area. According to investigators, the apartment had allegedly been purchased by Shiran Basik but was registered under his father’s name.

Abdul Razak Mohomed Basik had been summoned to the CCIB today (11) to provide a statement regarding the property.

Following his appearance before investigators, he was taken into custody in connection with the ongoing inquiry.

The investigation comes after Shiran Basik, who is suspected of major involvement in drug trafficking, was recently brought back to Sri Lanka from Dubai.

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa held discussions with Members of Parliament representing the North, East and Malaiyaham communities on Thursday (10) to address the mounting economic and social difficulties confronting these regions.

The talks took place at the Opposition Leader's Office in Parliament and brought together MPs concerned with the welfare of these communities, focusing on issues ranging from household incomes to public services.

The discussion gave considerable attention to healthcare provision, with participants examining the state of access to quality medical services in these regions alongside broader concerns about school education and child nutrition among vulnerable families.

Infrastructure shortcomings, which continue to hamper development in these areas, also featured prominently in the deliberations.

Rising living costs and persistent inflation formed another major strand of the conversation, with the MPs weighing how these pressures have eroded household incomes across the North, East and Malaiyaham regions.

Premadasa told the gathered legislators that sustained political intervention remained essential to resolving the long-standing social and economic challenges affecting these communities and to lifting their living standards.

He also said that closer coordination among opposition MPs would be necessary going forward, so that problems could be identified at the grassroots level and addressed through practical, workable solutions.

A multi-million rupee procurement process to modernise passenger bus halts and billboards in Colombo on a public-private partnership basis has stalled following serious administrative and legal irregularities.

Under tender ME/ME/ML/34/2025, the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) planned a four-year project to renovate 128 bus halts and 250 billboards while constructing 20 new bus halts and 20 billboards.

However, controversy surrounding the initial award forced municipal authorities to cancel the contract and call for fresh bids, sparking intense concern among procurement experts.

Price formula discrepancy and shift in position

Disagreements over project valuation surfaced shortly after municipal officials issued a Letter of Award on 7 July 2026 to a joint venture comprising Emerging Media (Pvt) Ltd and Hammer BTL (Pvt) Ltd.

Addendum 1 of the tender document mandated that bidders add ground rent to the minimum annual value set by the CMC.

The joint venture later claimed its Rs. 75,750,000 bid covered all mandatory fees, whereas CMC calculations placed the required total at Rs. 102,948,500.

Attempting to reduce agreed prices after winning an award violates standard bidding rules and undermines procurement discipline.

Is a bid bond of Rs. 500,000 sufficient?

Industry analysts have questioned the overall commercial design of the tender, particularly the low bid bond requirement. Despite the total project value exceeding Rs. 400 million, authorities set the bid bond at just Rs. 500,000.

Standard national procurement guidelines recommend setting bid securities at roughly one percent of estimated project value.

Observers note that setting an abnormally low security threshold may have discouraged established investors from competing while exposing the council to financial default.

Finance Committee intervention and legal contradictions

Controversy escalated on 13 August when the Standing Committee on Finance submitted its recommendations to the CMC.

The committee reported that the defaulting joint venture could bid in the upcoming re-tender because the firm had not undergone official blacklisting, despite failing to furnish a performance bond within seven days.

This recommendation directly contradicts Clause 10.1(2) of the municipal tender guidelines, which explicitly disqualifies any entity that directly or indirectly fails to execute a previous council contract.

Urban infrastructure and the future of PPP projects

Bus stops serve as critical daily infrastructure for thousands of commuters across the capital.

Mismanaged procurement procedures, commercial oversights, and questionable committee interventions have deprived the municipal council of vital revenue while delaying modern facilities for the public.

Failing to resolve these administrative flaws risks delaying future urban transport initiatives and harming ordinary passengers across Colombo.

A suspect accused of transferring approximately US$80 million, equivalent to around Rs. 23 billion, to overseas accounts has been arrested in Maradana by the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) of the Sri Lanka Police.

According to police, the suspect allegedly carried out the transfers through telegraphic transactions between 2023 and 2025.

The arrest was made as part of an ongoing FCID investigation into the alleged movement of a substantial amount of money from Sri Lanka to foreign accounts.

Investigators are now examining the source of the funds, the purpose behind the transactions and the individuals or entities connected to the overseas accounts.

Further investigations are being conducted to establish the full circumstances surrounding the alleged transfers.

Two men have been arrested by Katunayake Police in connection with a series of alleged thefts involving motorcycles, copper wires and mobile phones.

Police launched the investigation after officers received information about a suspicious man allegedly dismantling a motorcycle in the Andiambalama area.

The suspect was searched by police, who reportedly found 11 grams and 200 milligrams of heroin in his possession.

During questioning, investigators learned that the motorcycle being dismantled had allegedly been stolen from Veyangoda on September 8.

Police then traced and arrested a second suspect in the Seeduwa area over his alleged involvement in assisting the theft.

The suspects, aged 22 and 25, are residents of Andiambalama and Seeduwa respectively, according to police.

Further questioning reportedly uncovered information linking the suspects to two separate copper wire thefts and a mobile phone theft in Katunayake, as well as another alleged motorcycle theft in Seeduwa.

Katunayake Police are continuing investigations into the suspects and the reported thefts.

Former Minister Duminda Dissanayake has been released on bail by the Colombo High Court in a case involving the alleged possession of a gold-plated firearm without a valid licence.

The case was taken up today (10) before Colombo High Court Judge Udesh Ranatunga, where Dissanayake and a Kazakhstani national were formally served indictments filed by the Attorney General.

Both accused appeared in court following notices previously issued by the High Court. The indictments were subsequently handed over to them in open court.

Following the filing of the indictments, the court ordered the release of both accused on cash bail of Rs. 50,000 each. They were also required to provide two sureties valued at Rs. 2 million each.

The court further directed authorities to obtain the biometric data of both accused and submit a report to court.

The case has been fixed for a pre-trial conference on October 2.

According to the charges filed by the Attorney General, Dissanayake is accused of possessing a gold-plated firearm without a valid licence, while the second accused faces allegations of aiding and abetting the offence.

The firearm at the centre of the case was allegedly discovered at an apartment complex in Wellawatte on May 20, 2025.

Two brothers have died following a hand grenade attack on a residence in the Sirisangabo Mawatha area, within the Dehiwala Police Division, early this morning (11).

According to Sri Lanka Police, an unidentified person carried out the attack, leaving a 55-year-old man and his two children injured.

The injured father and his two sons, aged 11 and 17, were rushed to the Kalubowila Teaching Hospital for treatment. However, the two children later succumbed to their injuries.

The 55-year-old man, identified as the father of the two deceased boys, remains under medical care.

Police have not yet established the motive behind the attack or identified the person responsible.

Three police teams have been assigned to the investigation and are currently working to identify and apprehend those behind the attack.

Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa in Colombo yesterday (09).

The Opposition Leader underscored the vital need for a close, constructive, and continuous relationship between Sri Lanka and India during discussions with Minister Rajnath Singh, citing the deep-rooted historical, cultural, and people-to-people ties between the two neighbours.

The two leaders also engaged in wide-ranging discussions on key regional developments and bilateral issues of mutual concern, particularly expanding cooperation to foster peace, security, stability, and prosperity across the Indian Ocean region.

The visit carries particular significance as the first official trip to Sri Lanka by an Indian Defence Minister in 38 years, coming at a time when both countries are seeking to deepen cooperation on defence, maritime security and broader strategic matters.

They also exchanged gifts as a gesture of goodwill.