o Former Navy Chief Ravindra Gunawardena accused o Digital evidence submitted to commission backing allegations It was revealed at the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) probing political victimisation during the former Government that a former Navy Chief had attempted to assassinate the Avant-Garde Chairman in addition to more evidence coming to light. Avant Garde Maritime Services (Pvt.) Ltd. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Major (Retd.) Nissanka Senadhipathi told the PCoI that former Navy Commander Admiral Ravindra Wijegunawardana had sent naval officers to carry out a hit on him. “On 31 December, he sent two of his naval security officers with a 9 mm gun each to my residence in Kotte. Fortunately, my personal bodyguards, who are also former military personnel, were armed with weapons legally given by the State and were able to scare off the assailants,” he told the Commission. He said this assassination attempt had been carried out due to his opposition and activities against the moves to dismantle his maritime security operations by state actors as well as his objections to the seizing of the floating armory M.V. Mahanuwara by the Navy. Senadhipathi told the Commission that former Minister of Health Dr. Rajitha Seneratne had told the media the former Navy Commander had asserted that the operations of Avant-Garde Maritime Services were carried out illegally. Further evidence was given to the effect that the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) had allegedly filed cases against Senadhipathi to extract false evidence against current President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. “The first two officers of the CIABOC that interrogated me clearly told me after questioning me about my business that all my operations had been carried out legally. They are not in the employ of the CIABOC anymore. Thereafter, an officer named Pushpakuamara told me directly that he was told by the CIABOC Chief to get false evidence that could be used to prosecute the current President and in return I would be left alone allowed to continue businesses,” he said. In addition, Senadhipathi also submitted digital evidence of former CIABOC Chief Dilrukshi Wickremesinghe, allegedly confessing that the Yahapalana Government was taking political revenge on him and the Rajapaksas. In the voice recording of a telephone conversation between Senadhipathi and the CIABOC Chief, the latter can be heard saying that had she known the legal cases filed by the CIABOC against Senadhipathi would affect his maritime security services business, she would not have gone ahead with filing such cases against him. By Skandha Gunasekara