Shasheendra, too, is to be questioned soon

Former Agriculture Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage has filed an anticipatory bail application in the Fort Magistrate’s court in a bid to prevent the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) from taking him into custody in connection with the ongoing investigation into the importation of a stock of allegedly substandard organic fertiliser from China during Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s presidency.

Colombo Chief Magistrate Thanuja Lakmali has asked the CIABOCt to present its position regarding the issue at hand to the court on May 19.

The CIABOC has asserted that the transaction caused Sri Lanka a loss of USD 6.9 mn.

The CIABOC arrested former Additional Secretary (Development) to the State Ministry of Agriculture, Mahesh Gammanpila on April 28, 2025, over his role in the deal with China’s Qingdao Seawin Biotech in 2021.

At the time Mahesh Gammanpila served as the Secretary to the State Ministry of Agriculture, Shasheendra Rajapaksa had been its Minister. Gammanpila is the current Chief Secretary of the Uva Provincial Council.

Aluthgamage had been the Cabinet Minister at the time the government finalised the questionable deal with the Chinese company.

CIABOC, on May 5, told court that the investigations were continuing and the ministers who decided on the importation of fertiliser from China, too, would be arrested and produced in court.

According to the CIABOC website, Mahesh Gammanpila has caused approximately USD 6.9 million loss to the government by issuing orders to open the suspended Letters of Credit to import the substandard organic fertiliser consignment from Qingdao Seawin Biotech, China, in 2021.

Although Fort Magistrate granted bail to Gammanpila on May 5, he continued to be in remand as he couldn’t meet the bail conditions. The court has also imposed a travel ban on him. (SF)

… responsible for agencies tasked with national security, including intelligence

MP Gary Anandasangaree, of Sri Lankan Tamil origin, has been appointed as the Minister of Public Safety in Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s new Cabinet, Canadian media reported yesterday (14)

Anandasangaree will oversee key agencies tasked with Canada’s national security, including the Canada Border Services Agency, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.

Anandasangaree previously served as the Minister of Justice and Attorney General — the first Tamil-Canadian to do so — under Carney’s first Cabinet in March. He held this role alongside that of Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs, to which he was appointed under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s final Cabinet in December 2024.

Anandasangaree was re-elected into his local riding with an overwhelming majority in the federal election in April, continuing his position as a Member of Parliament in Scarborough-Guildwood-Rouge Park (previously Scarborough-Rouge Park) since 2015.

The Tamil Guardian reported that Anandasangaree, a lawyer and a long-time advocate for Tamil rights, has played an instrumental role in pushing for justice for war crimes and accountability for the genocide in Sri Lanka. He drove the implementation of sanctions by the Canadian government against Sri Lankan officials implicated in war crimes and crimes against humanity.

He also championed parliamentary efforts to formally recognise May 18th as Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day, with Canada becoming the first country in the world to do so — a move that was widely welcomed by Tamil survivors and human rights advocates.

Anandasangaree is a member of Carney’s new Cabinet of 28 ministers, who will be supported by 10 secretaries of state. Anita Anand, an MP of Indian Tamil descent, was appointed as the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Carney, who replaced Trudeau as the Prime Minister in March, led the Liberal Party to a fourth consecutive mandate, but fell two seats short of the threshold of 172 seats needed to secure a majority government.

The Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre (SVCC), the cultural arm of the High Commission of India, Colombo, commemorated the 164th birth anniversary of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, the Nobel laureate, poet, philosopher, and visionary, with a vibrant evening of intellectual and artistic homage on May 8, 2025.

The Indian HC press release: ” The celebration commenced with a lecture by renowned academic and cultural commentator Prof. Praneeth Abhayasundara of the University of Sri Jaywerdenapura, who reflected on Tagore’s enduring relevance, his humanist ideals, and the universality of his creative vision. Drawing connections between Tagore’s philosophy and the region’s shared cultural heritage, the lecture offered deep insight into the poet’s legacy beyond borders.

The evening continued with an array of soulful music and expressive dance performances, featuring Tagore’s compositions rendered by local and Indian artists. The audience was treated to Rabindra Sangeet by Shastrapathi Asith Attapattu, Shastrapathi Palinda Udawelaarachchi, Mrs. Jayanti Ray showcasing and the students of the Centre, the fusion of lyrical beauty and spiritual depth that marks Tagore’s artistic oeuvre. A Hungarian artist Virág Réka Túri mesmerised the audience with a captivating Odissi dance performance on the occasion.

The event drew participation from scholars, students, artists, and members of the Indian and Sri Lankan communities, all gathered to pay tribute to a literary icon whose work continues to inspire across generations. Commemoration of Gurudev Tagore by the Centre with Tagore Society of Sri Lanka reaffirmed intercultural dialogue through shared artistic and intellectual pursuits.

(Right) a performance in honour of Tagore (pictures courtesy IHC)