News
Ranil claims he was against banning Niqab for fear of losing intelligence on Islamic extremists
Former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, yesterday, told the PCoI probing the Easter Sunday attacks that he had been reluctant to ban Muslim women from wearing face covers because he felt it would stop the Muslim community from providing information about Islamist extremism.
Wickremesinghe said that because of the 1983 communal riots, the Tamil people had not provided information about the LTTE initially.
It had taken more than two years to get Tamil people to provide information to the government and security forces, he said. A similar situation would have arisen if Niqabs and other face-covering clothes of Muslim women had been banned, Wickremesinghe said.
The Commissioners then asked Wickremesinghe why Sri Lankan intelligence services had failed to uncover information about the terror attacks in April 2019 if the Muslim community had provided information about Islamist extremism.
Wickremesinghe said that the Muslims had provided a lot of information about extremism to security forces. It was up to the security forces to act on the information, he said. The inability to ascertain information about the attack was a weakness of the intelligence services, Wickremesinghe said.
The Additional Solicitor General, who led the evidence, asked Wickremesinghe if there had been serious conflicts between those who supported him and those who were with former President Maithripala Sirisena. Wickremesinghe said there had been no serious conflicts. There had been some problems that all governments generally faced, he added.
Approval of the Cabinet of Ministers has been granted at their meeting held on 19.05.2025 in order to introduce amendments to the Inland Revenue Act No. 24 of 2017 including the proposed tax revisions to enhance the tax structure paving way for state financial integrity based on revenue.
Accordingly, the revised draft bill has been prepared by the legal draftsman and clearance of the Attorney General has been received.
Therefore, the Cabinet of Ministers has granted approval for
the resolution furnished by the President in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, Policy Planning and Economic Development to publish the aforementioned draft bill in the government gazette notification and subsequently, forward the same to the Parliament for its concurrence.
The National Mineral Policy was prepared for the first time in the year 1999, and the aforementioned policy has been amended in 2023 to cover matters such as preparing an updated data system related to mineral resources, adding value to the export of minerals, encouraging mineral-related industrialists, extracting mineral resources and managing the environment sustainably, and resolving the issues related to the ownership of the land arising in extracting mineral resources.
The revised National Mineral Policy has been reupdated in line with the manifesto “A Sustainable Resource Utilization – Generation of the Highest Benefit” under the policy statement of the current government” A Thriving Nation – A Beautiful Life.”
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution presented by the Minister of Industries and
Entrepreneurship to implement the so-formulated “National Mineral Policy—2026.”
The Gampaha High Court has sentenced Twelve (12) individuals to death over the 2022 murder of former Polonnaruwa District Member of Parliament Amarakeerthi Athukorala and his security officer.
Heartbreak for Gurbaz and Afghanistan as South Africa win after double Super Over
Amendment of the Inland Revenue Act No. 24 of 2017
Cabinet nod for “National Mineral Policy” – 2026
Twelve sentenced to death by Gampaha High Court
Ten new buses with facilities for people with special needs
Ghosts of 2016 writ large as England, West Indies meet again
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
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