Wed Feb 05 11:35:31 UTC 2025: ## Sri Lankan Government Denies Plot to Arrest Former President Rajapaksa
**Colombo, February 5, 2025** – Sri Lanka’s Minister of Health and Mass Media, Nalin Jayathissa, has denied allegations that the government plans to arrest former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in connection with the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings. These allegations were made by opposition politician Udaya Gammanpila, who accused the government of attempting to shift blame for the attacks onto the state intelligence services. The bombings, which killed 270 people, including Indian nationals, are currently under renewed investigation by the National People’s Power (NPP) government.
Mr. Jayathissa stated that the government will be guided by investigators and is unaware of any such arrest plans. While acknowledging Mr. Gammanpila’s claims, he suggested the opposition politician may have received misinformation. The NPP government, which campaigned on reviving high-profile rights abuse cases predating 2015, has launched a fresh probe into the Easter Sunday attacks.
Separately, the government announced it will closely examine the attorney general’s recent decision to release three key suspects in the 2009 murder of Lasantha Wickrematunga, editor of the Sunday Leader. This decision has drawn criticism from human rights groups who are urging the government to bring Wickrematunga’s killers to justice.
First Piper 