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Police top brass are complaining that their stepped up crime prevention efforts are being stymied by some officials at the Police Commission.

Police Commission ‘villain’ blocking transfers, crime prevention

Transfers of ineffective Police officers over whom Police Chief Pujith Jayasundera had issued orders were being stalled by a top official.
A senior Police source said the official, who played a key role in the Defence Ministry during the previous administration and figured in investigations into high profile cases, has found an important slot in the Commission.

Officers to whom transfer orders are issued, the source alleged, had been conveyed to those concerned. Thereafter, these officers send in appeals to stay the transfer. That position is then conveyed to Police Headquarters, the source said.

According to the source, Police Chief Jayasundera is to now send in a dossier to President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Law and Order Minister Minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara, stating the string of instances where the controversial official has interfered.

The dossier, now under preparation, includes material about the political involvement of the official when he was in his previous post, the Police source added. “If someone is stalling efforts at fighting crime including a rise in murder cases, it is eventually a bad reflection on the Government. We want to ensure that the blame is not placed on the Police Department,” said the source.

Talks with prelates on Buddhist law reforms
Once again, the Government is considering amendments to two legal enactments related to Buddhism – the Buddhist Temporalities Act and the Theravada Kathikawa.
Government sources said the suggested amendments were being discussed with the prelates of the Asgiriya, Malwatte and Ramanna Nikayas. No finality has been reached on what amendments will be moved, these sources said.

Dual citizenship provision haunts Jaffna Councillor
With the introduction of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, persons holding dual citizenship are prohibited from contesting for public office. This saw the ouster of Geetha Kumarasinghe from Parliament but allegations are rife that many other elected representatives hold dual citizenship.

This week, the Court of Appeal issued an interim order, preventing Jaffna Municipal Council member and former parliamentarian R.V. Kuhendran from functioning as a council member. This was after a petition was filed by an ITAK member claiming that Mr. Kuhendran was also a British citizen. The interim order will remain till the final hearing of the case.

Esala turns down US post
Esala Weerakoon, a career diplomat, has turned down an offer to be Sri Lanka’s Ambassador in the United States, Foreign Ministry sources said.

He was earlier Deputy Ambassador to Jaliya Wickremesuriya, a cousin of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
According to these sources, Mr Weerakoon has said that he is compelled to remain in Sri Lanka to look after his ailing father.
Mr Weerakoon is now Secretary to the Ministry of Tourism.

Basil blasts TNA leader Sampanthan

Basil Rajapaksa, ideologue and key figure behind the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) hit out at the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) when he addressed representatives of newly formed trade unions at the party’s Nelum Mawatha office in Battaramulla.
TNA leader Rajavarothayam Sampanthan, he said, had asked how the SLPP could dispense with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) founded by the late S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike. There were SLFP members in the SLPP.

Mr Rajapaksa, a prime mover in the formation of the SLPP said that the answer to Mr Sampanthan’s question was simple. Mr Sampanthan joined the Federal Party (or the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi – ITAK) in 1956 and today he is the leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). There are ITAK members in that alliance, he pointed out.

Mr Rajapaksa also charged that the TNA had helped the United National Party (UNP) government to pass legislation in Parliament to put off elections to the local councils. Now they were clamouring for PC polls. With that act, he said, the TNA had let down the Tamil people since elections may not become a reality.

“Now the Tamil people are saying that the Provincial Councils set up to share power at the provincial level have been destroyed by the TNA,” Mr Rajapaksa added.

Police Chief blames Police for Jaffna’s crime situation
The Police Chief, who was in Jaffna this week to assess the situation following serious concerns over the breakdown of law and order in the region, pointed fingers at his own department for its inefficiency in preventing crimes.

After talks with Northern Province Chief Minister C. V. Wigneswaran on the current situation in the province, Inspector General Pujith Jayasundera asked the top cops serving in the region what they had been doing all this time instead of taking effective steps to bring the situation under control. An angry IGP, before he got into his vehicle, was heard telling top police officials, “Madhi”- meaning not enough of work was being done by them.

Earlier Chief Minister Wigneswaran blamed ineffective policing and inefficient police personnel for the sudden increase in crime in the region. He also told the IGP that the menace continued with impunity because of corruption in the Police Department.
The IGP was part of a high level delegation that included Law and Order Minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara and Deputy Minister Nalin Bandara.

They undertook the visit to evaluate the law and order situation which has been aggravated by gang violence of sword-carrying groups.
During the news conference at the Jaffna Police Head office, the IGP, responding to journalists’ questions came up with many reasons and acknowledged that the Police Department was not an exception when it came to state-sector corruption.
His hand gesture indicating counting notes made the journalists and police officials burst into laughter.

MLA with Singapore ahead of seeking to extradite Mahendran
Sri Lanka and Singapore are negotiating a Mutual Legal Assistance programme for the purpose of gathering and exchanging information in an effort to enforce public or criminal laws.

A Sri Lanka delegation headed by Justice Ministry Secretary W.M.M.R. Adhikari and including Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) Senior Superintendent K.D. Priyantha, and Attorney General’s Department official Tusith Mudalige who liaises with the FCID.
The MLA with Singapore is said to be a prelude to the extradition to Sri Lanka of Central Bank’s former governor Arjuna Mahendran over the bond scam. He is wanted for questioning by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Lanza to join JHU
UPFA’s Negombo District parliamentarian Nimal Lanza is to switch sides at the next parliamentary polls.
Insiders say he has already negotiated to contest on the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) ticket.

Mahathir may come here next month
Plans are under way to invite Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed to visit Sri Lanka next month.
This is to declare open the Hirax lubricant blending plant – a ten million US dollar investment from a leading Malaysian firm.
After a protracted battle, the firm has won its licences with the intervention of President Maithripala Sirisena.