Courtesy Adaderana

Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) leader and former MP Udaya Gammanpila says that former Senior DIG Ravi Seneviratne, who has been named as a main accused in an investigative committee reports on the Easter Sunday attacks, should be immediately removed from the post of Secretary to the Ministry of Public Security.

He made these comments at a press conference held in Colombo this morning (21), for the alleged publicizing of two previously unreleased reports regarding the Easter Sunday terror attacks.

Gammanpila had yesterday stated that he would give President Anura Kumara Dissanayake time until 10.00 a.m. this morning (21) to make public the two investigative reports in question and vowed to release them himself if the President fails to do so.  

Accordingly, speaking at a press conference today after the said deadline had ended, he emphasized that one of the two reports will be publicized today whereas the remaining report will be released to the public next Monday.

He stated that the report of the Committee of Inquiry, chaired by retired High Court Judge A.N.J. De Alwis, appointed to investigate the actions taken by the State Intelligence Service (SIS), Chief of National Intelligence (CNI), and other relevant authorities concerning prior intelligence received about the bomb attacks on 21 April 2019, would be released by him today.

Meanwhile, the second report of the committee led by retired Supreme Court Justice S.I. Imam, which investigated the claims made in the Channel 4 documentary that alleged collusion between the Sri Lankan intelligence services and the terror suspects involved in the Easter Sunday bombings, would be released on October 28, he said.

Gammanpila further accused the President of intentionally violating the constitution and therefore, insisted that the President owes an immediate apology to the nation for concealing information regarding the two reports.

He criticized the incumbent President for not making public the two reports of the investigative committees appointed by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe, suggesting that the delay was intentional.

Gammanpila said that a committee chaired by retired Supreme Court Justice S. I. Imam had handed over its report to the former president on June 25, 2024.

The second investigation report conducted under a committee chaired by retired Justice A.N.J. de Alwis, which examined potential failures by the Police and State Intelligence Services regarding the Easter Sunday attacks, was handed over to then President Wickremesinghe on September 14, 2024, exactly one week before the appointment of the current President.

Gammanpila questioned why the current government was concealing these reports, and also highlighted a particular detail from the 43rd page of one report, which he claims indicated that the then Director of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) had warned the Senior DIG of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) stating that a foreign intelligence agency had warned about an impending series of suicide attacks planned in churches and other places by terrorists affiliated with the National Thowheeth Jama’ath (NTJ), including its leader Mohamed Zahran, on April 9, 2019.

Gammanpila pointed out that the Senior DIG mentioned in the report is none other than the current Secretary to the Ministry of Public Security, Ravi Seneviratne.

The document mentions the names, national identity card numbers, telephone numbers, addresses, the places frequented by them, people they associate with, even the places where they go at night and the times they come and go,” said the former MP.

He stated that given the serious allegations levelled against Ravi Senaviratne in the commission report, he has completely reviewed the Fundamental Rights (FR) petition filed by the former DIG seeking to prevent his arrest. 

The PHU leader further alleged that on page 41 of this report it is recommended that Ravi Seneviratne should be prosecuted and punished for criminal negligence.

If that is the case, Ravi Seneviratne should be one of the main accused in the Easter attacks. Under his supervision, if the investigation into the Easter attack is being reopened, can justice truly be served for the Easter attack victims? Can we have any hope of justice from the police in such a situation? This is like asking for clues from the thief himself instead of asking the thief’s mother,” he said.

Gammanpila indicated that concerns were raised regarding the appointment of Ravi Seneviratne as Secretary of the Ministry of Public Security before the report was received. He also noted that the ‘Alwis report’, specifically on page 14, recommends filing criminal charges against former Senior DIG Ravi Seneviratne and former CID Director Shani Abeysekera for their failure to adequately perform their duties.

Additionally, there are 17 officials named in this report who should face prosecution. Why did the President and this government try to suppress this report? The reason is that the President’s incompetence has been exposed. If we do not disclose these reports now, the President will be able to protect these individuals from prosecution,” he added.

Gammanpila questioned the decision to appoint Ravi Seneviratne as Secretary of the Ministry of Public Security, despite his implication in the Easter attack, and criticized the choice to let him oversee the investigation into that attack.

He further said, We have reasonable suspicion that this appointment was made with the ulterior motive of misleading the entire nation by distorting the truth about the Easter attack, in order to protect Mohamed Ibrahim, who was on the JVP national list and whom even then Director of the CID Shani Abeysekera believed was involved in the attack.”

In light of this context, the committee has called for prosecution, he said while asserting that Ravi Seneviratne, now a suspect in a significant police investigation, should be promptly removed from his position. He emphasized that justice for the Easter victims cannot be anticipated while Seneviratne remains in office.

The President must immediately apologize to the nation for this abuse of power and the willful violation of the Constitution within the first month of assuming office. If the President does not take these two actions removing Ravi Seneviratne from his position immediately and stopping the deliberate suppression of information from the public, we will bring forward an impeachment against the President in the next Parliament,” he said.