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Sirisena calls Ranil a political devil

Published

6 years ago

2020/10/14

Former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was a political devil and the former yahapalana government was akin to a mismatched wedding, former President Maithripala Sirisena said on Monday, at the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) investigating the Easter Sunday attacks.

Sirisena told the PCoI that disputes arose between him and Wickremesinghe within the first week of establishing the yahapalana government.

“Within the first week Wickremesinghe wanted to appoint Arjuna Mahendran as the Governor of Central Bank. I wasn’t happy because Mahendran was a citizen of Singapore. However Wickremesinghe insisted that Mahendran was the ideal person and since I also did not want to create a conflict within a week of coming to power and I let it happen,” Sirisena said.

The ex-president said that the relationship further deteriorated after he appointed the Presidential Commission of Inquiry to investigate the Central Bank Treasury Bond Scams.

Sirisena also said that he banned several officials, including former IGP Pujith Jayasundara, from attending the National Security Council (NSC) due to issues in their conduct.

“Most of the presentations made by the former IGP when he attended the NSC added no value. He was being criticized at the time for his unbecoming behavior,” he added.

Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police (SDIG) Ravi Seneviratne of the CID had been invited to the NSC instead of Pujith.

Earlier Jayasundara told the PCoI that barring him from attending the NSC prevented him from learning about the rising Islamic terrorism in the country.

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Minister of Health of the Russian Federation attends the Sri Lanka–Russia Medical Forum

Published

1 hour ago

2026/05/5

Priyan

Mikhail Murashko, Minister of Health of the Russian Federation, officially visited the Russian House in Colombo to attend the Sri Lanka–Russia Medical Forum, where members of the Sri Lanka Russia Business Council and graduates from the Association of Sri Lankan Graduates from Socialist countries (ASLGSC) attended.

This historic gathering was graced by rectors and representatives from several world-class Russian medical institutions, including Kursk State Medical University, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, and Tver State Medical University, among others.

The forum commenced with an address by Minister Murashko, during which Russian medical graduates in attendance raised pertinent questions regarding medical and pharmaceutical sector opportunities in Sri Lanka.

Levan Dzhagaryan, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, together with Madam Maria L. Popova, Counsellor of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Sri Lanka & the Maldives and Director of the Russian House in Colombo, graced the occasion. Both officials expressed strong support for continued collaboration and future initiatives between the two nations.

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Members of Sri Lanka Cricket Transformation Committee Officially Appointed

Published

9 hours ago

2026/05/5

Priyan

The official appointment letters for the members of the newly established “Cricket Transformation Committee” (CTC) were handed over on Monday (04) by the Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Sunil Kumara Gamage.

The following members received their letters of appointment at the Ministry premises:

Sidath Wettimuny
Thushira Radella
Prakash Schaffter
Ms. Avanthi Colombage

The Ministry also noted that veteran cricketers Roshan Mahanama and Kumar Sangakkara, who are key members of the committee, are currently overseas. Their official appointments will be formalised immediately upon their arrival in Sri Lanka.

The Cricket Transformation Committee has been mandated to oversee the administration and drive structural reforms within Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) in accordance with the powers vested in the Minister under the Sports Act No. 25 of 1973.