Allegations to the Secretary of the Ministry of Public Security about the Easter attack

The report of the ANJ de Alwis Inquiry Committee, appointed by President Ranil Wickremesinghe, was tasked with investigating the actions taken by the State Intelligence Service (SIS), the Chief of National Intelligence (CNI), and other relevant authorities concerning the prior intelligence received about the bombings on April 21, 2019. was released today by Udaya Gammanpila, the leader of Pivithuru Hela Urumaya.

He shared the findings of the report at a special press conference, revealing that, prior to the Easter Sunday bombings, a foreign intelligence agency had warned about a possible suicide attack. Records show that then Deputy Inspector General of Police, Ravi Seneviratne, had been informed of the relevant information through a highly confidential letter.

He further stated that no appropriate actions were taken for 12 days, and if Ravi Seneviratne had acted immediately, all the bombers involved could have been arrested. The report clearly points out, on page 41, that Ravi Seneviratne should face criminal charges for failing to prevent this crime.

Additionally, the report recommends that the former Director of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Shani Abeysekera, should also be prosecuted for not performing his duties properly.

Gammanpila further mentioned that the report has recommended filing criminal cases against seventeen (17) government officials in total.

It is noteworthy that Ravi Seneviratne has been appointed by the current government as the Secretary of the Ministry of Public Security, while Shani Abeysekera, ( retired,) who was also recommended for prosecution by the committee, has been reappointed as the Director of the Central Criminal Intelligence Analysis Bureau.

However, Archbishop Malcolm Ranjith has rejected the findings of this report. You can read the ANJ de Alwis report here