Perpetual Treasuries Limited (PTL) Owner Arjun Aloysius and its CEO Kasun Palisena, who were arrested by the CID over the Central Bank bond scam, were further remanded till May 10 by the Fort Magistrate’s Court this morning.

April 29 and 30 were declared as the Vesak days for this year while the Vesak week was declared from April 26 to May 2, the Government Information Department said.

A car had been found floating in the Viyana canal in Mahiyanganaya early this morning and a resident of the area had informed the police about it.

The Sri Lankan student who threatened to set off a bomb on board a flight from Melbourne to Kuala Lumpur is due to face court for a pre-sentence hearing, SBS News reported.

The Oman Air Boeing 737 flight which was scheduled to land at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), Katunayake was diverted to Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) last night due to adverse weather, the BIA Duty Manager said.

President Maithripala Sirisena reportedly promised to introduce political reforms to Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) with a change of some office bearers between May 8 and 15, it is learnt.

The SLFP rebel group of 16 who quit the ‘Unity Government’ after supporting the No Faith Motion against the Prime Minister did not raise a mummer about sitting in the Opposition as an independent SLFP group in Parliament from May 8 onwards, Ports and Shipping Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said.

While stating that 3,000 police personnel will be deployed on Vesak Day for the security of the people and traffic controls in the Colombo City, Police Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekara said five Vesak zones will be held in Colombo including 11 pandals.

While stating that the proposal to restrict Pandals on Vesak and Poson Poya Days is not a governmental decision, but a ministerial request made to people, Buddhasasana Minister Gamini Jayawickrama Perera today said the request to restrict pandals on Vesak and Poson Poya Days still remain.

The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) said today they would discuss the Draft Bill of the 20th Amendment with all factions including the President, Prime Minister, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and present it in Parliament in May as a Private Members Bill.

The Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) rejected to register a foreign medical team of around 150 members who had sought approval to hold clinics in Sri Lanka, a spokesman to the SLMC today said.

More than 1,500 Government-owned vehicles under the purview of the nine Provincial Councils were not in running condition, a report issued at the Cabinet briefing revealed.

Sri Lanka has reiterated the importance of the Non-Proliferation of the Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as the global regime for nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament which ensures a balanced and non-discriminatory approach to building international peace and security.
 

A 46-year-old Sri Lankan born woman with Canadian citizenship is among the identified victims killed in the Toronto incident where 10 people were killed and at least 15 were injured when a van ploughed down a crowded side-walk in Toronto, Canada on Monday.

According to currency dealers, the rupee hit a fresh low of Rs.157.40 against US dollar yesterday, surpassing the previous record low of Rs.157.30 recorded on Tuesday.