In the wee hours on Thursday 2 May 2013, prominent Muslim politician Azath Salley, former Deputy Mayor of Colombo Municipality and leader of the newly formed National Unity Alliance, was arrested from his daughter’s Kolonnawa house. He is now being held at the CID headquarters in Fort on a three month detention order.

Salley, taken into custody under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, was accused of inciting   people aimed at causing damage to ethnic and religious harmony, in the guise of agitating against the go

The Indian Supreme Court today allowed commissioning of the Kudankulam nuclear plant in Tamil Nadu, dismissing objections by anti-nuclear activists to its establishment.

A bench of Justices K S Radhakrishnan and Dipak Misra relied on the ‘unanimous’ opinions of experts over the plant’s safety and security aspects. Observing that the court should respect the national policy that is meant for ‘larger public interest,’ the bench said that the plant had to go on for controlled use of nuclear energy.

A group of Tamils who were attempting to enter Sri Lanka from India were arrested at sea off Hambantota, the Navy media unit said.

The Navy said that 65 Tamils were on the boat at the time of the arrest and they had arrived from Kerala.

The group has been handed over to the CID for further investigations, a Navy spokesman said.

Although there was more good news from London yesterday that both the British Prime Minister and Foreign Minister will be attending the November Commonwealth Summit in Sri Lanka, we do not apologize for returning to the theme of our editorial last week of whether the money that we will spend on hosting this event will bring us benefits that are worth the price. As we said at the time, losing the bid to host the Commonwealth Games here was widely welcomed by a broad spectrum of public opinion in the country resentful of the government s p

Eleven Sri Lankan fishermen, who were arrested four days ago by the Indian Coast Guard for illegally entering Indian waters, were attacked by locals following rumours of their alleged involvement in attacking villagers.

Three of these fishermen were seriously injured after the incident occurred at Dummulapeta area of East Godavari district last night, the police said.

The three fishermen had to be rushed to the Kakinada government hospital, while the other eight received minor injuries in the attack, the police said

Hostile criticism and unfair targeting of Sri Lanka by Canada only serves to further strengthen the evil forces working against Sri Lanka and does not contribute in any manner to the ongoing rebuilding and reconciliation process in the multi cultural society of the country. Sri Lanka looks to all States in the Commonwealth to uphold the principles of objectivity, understanding, mutual respect and the equality of sovereign States, Sri Lanka s High Commissioner to Ottawa Chitranganee Wagiswara said in a statement yesterday.

The Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) yesterday warned the former office bearers of its National Hospital branch against spreading false rumours and sabotaging the activities organized by the parent body.

GMOA General Secretary Dr. Chandika Epitakaduwa yesterday warned that if the former office bearers of the NHSL branch resorted to sabotage, the GMOA would  have no alternative but to take legal action against them.

It is only on rare occasions that we come across police officers being commended or felicitated, Western Province (North) DIG Vass Gunawardene said at a ceremony to felicitate Mirihana Chief Inspector Eric Perera.

“This happens because police officers perform their duties away from the limelight aloof of the ordinary citizens,” he said.

The felicitation ceremony was organised by the Mirigama friendship organisation, the business community, drivers’ unions and voluntary organisations.

A married Sri Lankan maid was on Monday jailed for 10 years for killing her lover, an Indian national, in 2009 following a fight in his room.

The High Court heard that the couple started their affair in 2007. Mr Murugaiyan has been working here since 1998 while Puwaneswary came to Singapore in 2004. Puwaneswary Tharmalingam, now 34, pleaded guilty to striking Mr Murugaiyan Selvam, 32, on the head with an improvised dumbbell in his room at his Kaki Bukit workplace.

A woman’s identity card, a gold tooth, a large number of human bones, male and female clothes and a number of travel bags were among the items recovered along with aircraft parts, when the Navy resumed salvaging of the Lion Air aircraft which was shot down by the LTTE in coast.

After the Navy divers laboured for about seven hours, at a depth of 20 metres, among the items recovered were a leg bone of a human and a stethoscope.

The ill-fated aircraft’s p