The political ripples created following the Easter Sunday attacks are now reaching the level of tidal waves with the actions initiated by the fast launched by MP Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera demanding the resignation of Governors Azath Salley and A.L.M. Hizbullah as well as Minister Rishad Bathiudeen. The verbal threats by some members of the Buddhist clergy, the eventual resignation of Salley, Hizbullah and all Muslim ministers in the Government early last week were the tip of the iceberg when looking at the political development towards the mid to latter part of the week. The Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) probing the Easter Sunday attacks commenced sessions last week with former DIG Nalaka de Silva, IGP Pujith Jayasundara, and former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando coming before the committee to testify. The former officials started to drop bomb after bomb before the open committee giving the impression of a kamikaze operation. The proceedings of the PSC and its revelations resulted in President Maithripala Sirisena summoning Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his Cabinet of Ministers for yet another showdown on Friday (7) at 7.30 p.m. Sitting down for the meeting, President Sirisena called for the immediate suspension of the PSC. The President has charged that he would be forced to take some drastic action if the Government continued in this manner. He said he would boycott Cabinet and would not convene Cabinet meetings if he is pushed to the limit. A heated exchange of words has then taken place between the President and several ministers. “You appointed the Malalgoda Committee to probe the attacks, but the report has still not been received. The report was due to be handed over in two weeks. Such a report has not even reached Parliament,” one of the ministers had said. “The reports will be sent before Parliament at the appropriate time. There are five cases before the Supreme Court now and I’m included in three of them. In such a backdrop, if parliamentary select committees are used to compromise national security by getting intelligence details out in the media, then I will not convene Cabinet meetings here after. I will not participate in any government activity. You can carry out your own work as you please. I too will not co-operate with the Government,” Sirisena has charged. The President had stood firm in his objections over the revelation of sensitive intelligence details to the media through the PSC. He has further noted that the Attorney General (AG) had explained to him the implications the PSC proceedings would have on the court cases filed related to the Easter Sunday attacks. According to Sirisena, he was distressed by the failure of Speaker Karu Jayasuriya to inform Parliament of the concerns raised by the AG although it had been communicated to him. The President further noted that he was prepared to share all information that was in his possession if any parliamentarian felt the need to know. He has asked the Cabinet of Ministers as to why they did not understand the gravity of what he was saying and the complications a country would have to face when sensitive intelligence details are discussed before the media. Be that as it may, Sirisena has finally said that he would not permit any official in the active service of the country’s defence establishment to testify before the PSC. “I will take the responsibility for their actions,” Sirisena has claimed. He has added that Head of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) Sisira Mendis has been removed and a new head would be appointed in place. However, media reports yesterday (8) have quoted Mendis as saying he had resigned from his office. Meanwhile, the Cabinet of Ministers has in one voice responded saying that the Government could not decide on the PSC as it was a matter before Parliament. “The Cabinet cannot decide. It is Parliament that will have to decide whether to proceed with the PSC or not,” a senior Cabinet Minister has said at the meeting. Therefore, the emergency Cabinet meeting had ended in a deadlock. Earlier that day, the President had taken up these issues during a meeting with senior police officers. During the meeting with senior police officers held at the Presidential Secretariat on Friday (7) evening, Sirisena has said the country’s intelligence services were being compromised through the actions of the PSC. Modi’s visit It is in this backdrop that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to arrive in Sri Lanka this morning (9). Modi is expected to make a brief visit to Sri Lanka on his way to the Maldives on an invitation extended by the President. The visit by the Indian Premier takes place following the recent meeting between Modi and Sirisena in New Delhi following the former’s swearing into office for a second term. During the discussion, the Indian Premier had asked President Sirisena that while he had India’s support in the fight to eradicate terrorism from Sri Lanka, what more he could do. Sirisena had asked Modi to visit Sri Lanka as it would send a message to the world that Sri Lanka was safe for foreign visits. Meanwhile, The Sunday Morning also learnt that the Indian Prime Minister was likely to discuss the proposed East Container Terminal project at the Colombo Port during his visit to Sri Lanka. Minister of National Integration, Official Languages, Social Progress, and Hindu Religious Affairs Mano Ganesan, who accompanied President Sirisena to India, told The Sunday Morning last week that President Sirisena had inquired from the Indian Premier as to the identity of the Indian company that would be working on developing the East Terminal at the Colombo Port. “The President told me that Prime Minister Modi had pointed out that only an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) had been signed on the matter so far and that the Indian company to develop the East Terminal would be decided once the official agreement between the two nations was inked,” Minister Ganesan said. The Cabinet of Ministers gave conditional approval for a proposal to allow India and Japan to develop and later have shares in the East Terminal of the Colombo Port. An MoU had been signed in this regard. Accordingly, India would have 20%, Japan 29%, while Sri Lanka would have 51% shares of the terminal. Operational control will be fully vested with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA). Ganesan had also said that during Prime Minister Modi’s brief visit to Sri Lanka next weekend, the latter will reaffirm India’s commitment to eradicating any ISIS threat in Sri Lanka. Nevertheless, Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka takes place at a time when Sri Lanka’s politics is in turbulence. Resignations Last week saw a poignant moment in Sri Lanka’s political history when Muslim ministers in the Government decided to resign from their portfolios. First to resign were Western and Easter Governors Azath Salley and A.L.M. Hizbullah. Given the growing dissention against Salley and Hizbullah in society, the President was forced to force them to resign from their posts. Finally, following discussions that took place from last Sunday (2) night, they handed in their resignations on Monday (3). Later that day, Cabinet Ministers Rishad Bathiudeen, Rauff Hakeem, Kabir Hashim, A.H.M. Haleem and five deputy ministers including Deputy Ministers Ali Shahir Moulana and A.H.M. Fowzie resigned from their posts. The ministers claimed that it was a temporary move to assist the ongoing investigations into the Easter Sunday attacks as well as to show displeasure at the Government for its failure to address the issues faced by the Muslim community as a whole after the attacks. A meeting between all Muslim parliamentarians was held at former Minister A.H.M. Fowzie’s residence. During the discussion, all Muslim parliamentarians had reached a consensus that the ongoing issue that is being politically stage managed would not conclude with Bathiudeen’s resignation. It was then that all Muslim MPs holding portfolios in the Government decided to resign from their posts and sit as backbenchers in the governing side. They claimed that it would also help the ongoing probe into the Easter Sunday attacks. When the Muslim MPs were at a discussion on resolving the growing crisis situation in the country created by the fast unto death launched by Ven. Rathana Thera and the threat to create havoc by Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) General Secretary Ven. Galagod Aththe Gnanasara Thera, Prime Minister Wickremesinghe, Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera, and Opposition Leader Rajapaksa were holding a meeting at Temple Trees on the economic issues faced by the country in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday attacks. Hakeem sent a message to Wickremesinghe that the Muslim ministers needed to have an urgent meeting with him. The Premier had asked them to come to Temple Trees as soon as the meeting with Rajapaksa concluded. After sitting down for the meeting, Hakeem informed that all the Muslim ministers in the Government had reached a consensus and decided to resign from their portfolios. However, he said they would continue to support the Government and sit as backbenchers in Parliament. Minister Dr. Harshs de Silva, who was also at the meeting, had continuously shown his mobile phone to Wickremesinghe giving him an update on the situation in the country following Rathana Thera’s and Gnanasara Thers’s action. A visibly shaken de Silva had kept insisting to the Prime Minister that some form of action needed to be taken in order to prevent a serious crisis from taking place in the country. Samaraweera has however vehemently opposed the move by the Muslim ministers. Mangala’s move Angered by the goings on, Finance Minister Samaraweera charged that the resignations cannot be allowed. Samaraweera in fact, went a step further and announced that he too would resign in solidarity with his Muslim colleagues. “This would otherwise create a bad precedent. It would not be good for the Government if the Muslim ministers resign en masse. If I join them, it would dilute the impact to some extent,” Samaraweera has told the group. He has reminded everyone at the meeting of the long-term repercussions the country has had to face following the resignation of Appapillai Amirthalingam in 1983. The Minister has further likened the situation to the tragedy that befell the S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike-Chelvanayagam pact in 1957. However, all Muslim ministers have thanked Samaraweera, but said he should not make such a move and resign from the portfolio. Hakeem has reiterated that the Muslim MPs would continue to support the Government. Nevertheless, Samaraweera has explained that it is not a matter of supporting the Government but the long-term impact on the country. After returning to his ministry office from Temple Trees, Samaraweera had summoned the heads of all institutions under his purview for the meeting. Addressing the meeting, Samaraweera has said he was displeased with the decision of the Muslim ministers to resign as it would have a severe impact on the country in the future. He has explained in detail the dangers of extremism and racism that would befall the country if political leaders do not take appropriate action at the required time. “I don’t feel I should be part of a rotten political culture if it is going to be based on extremism and racism,” Samaraweera has said. However, all officials at the meeting have objected to Samaraweera’s move and insisted that moderate voices like his should be heard in the Government and Cabinet and his resignation would therefore have an adverse impact on the country’s political culture. Mahanayakes’ call Be that as it may, on Wednesday (5), the mahanayakes called on the Muslim ministers to withdraw their resignation letters and to re-assume their offices. Following a meeting of the Maha Sangha of the three Nikayas in Kandy on Wednesday, the Anunayaka of the Malwatte Chapter of the Siyam Nikaya Ven. Niyangoda Vijithasiri addressed the media and said that it was the opinion of the Maha Sangha that all Muslim ministers should not have resigned. The thera said that if there were allegations against ministers or other important officials of the Government, they should prove their innocence. “At our meeting, we decided to hold separate discussions with these political leaders on the matter,” the thera has said. While noting that the country was at a critical juncture following the Easter Sunday attacks, the thera has reportedly said it was the opinion of the Maha Sangha that it was important for all three major communities – Sinhala, Tamil, and Muslim – to stay united more than ever to overcome the current difficulties. He has observed that if the fear and uncertainty which prevails in the country following the Easter Sunday attacks was allowed to continue the economic situation and the peoples living standards could further deteriorate. “If we do not properly understand the challenges we are facing now and take remedial action immediately, the country may lose its hard-earned peace, as well as social and economic stability”. “Following another round of talks, we will release a statement containing the opinions and proposals of the Maha Sangha on these matters in the next few days,” he has added. Chief Prelate of the Asgiriya Chapter Most Ven. Warakagoda Sri Gnanarathana Thera had presided over the Maha Sangha meeting. The Lekakadikari Theras of the three Nikayas and other members of the Maha Sangha had participated in the discussion. The following day (6), all Muslim ministers who resigned from their portfolios sent individual letters of resignation to the President and Prime Minister. Finally, the gazette notification announcing the resignation of the Muslim ministers were issued by last (8) morning. Re-appointment SLMC Leader, MP Hakeem says that a final decision on whether the Muslim MPs who previously held portfolios in the Government would re-accept their ministries would be made after discussions with the mahanayakes. According to Hakeem, the Muslim MPs planned to meet with the mahantake thero in the next few weeks and a final decision on re-accepting portfolios would be made after discussing the outcomes of the meetings with the mahanayakes and the Muslim MPs. He has told the media that the Muslim MPs met on a daily basis to discuss the ongoing crisis situation. However, he said that the Muslim MPs have reached a unanimous decision to meet with the mahanayake thero and explain in detail the reasons for their resignation and what their political plan for the future was. “Our unanimous decision to resign in no way indicates a formation of a gang against the Government. We will not allow any harm to befall the country and nation,” Hakeem has said. It is in this backdrop that the Muslim MPs met with Opposition Leader Rajapaksa yesterday (8) at his official residence on Wijerama Mawatha, Colombo 7. During their meeting with Rajapaksa, the Muslim MPs have explained their situation. Rajapaksa has said that while understanding the state of their situation, he was concerned over the collective resignation of all Muslim ministers from their ministerial positions as that may create a clear demarcation between certain communities within the nation. However, both parties had agreed that terrorism must be eradicated from the country and that they would do everything in their power to ensure that peace and security is maintained within the State. A senior Muslim parliamentarian told The Sunday Morning that the Muslim MPs were disgruntled with the manner in which the President and the Prime Minister along with his Government had managed the issue related to Muslim political leaders. SLFP blues The Sirisena-led Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), especially the party’s parliamentarians were left dumbfounded last week when their Party Leader claimed that he had no intention of contesting at the next presidential election. At last week’s Cabinet meeting on Tuesday (4), Sirisena has said that the United National Front (UNF) Government was becoming unpopular among the people. “I’m not convinced by the programme of the pohottuwa (Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna). They don’t seem to have a clear programme. I don’t see a clear programme of the UNF either. I understand the situation in the country. If the UNP is to move forward, it will require a strong programme. Otherwise there’s no way to stop the Government’s unpopularity increasing further,” the President has said. The media reported this comment giving various interpretations. While some felt the President was going to abandon the ongoing discussion to form an alliance with the SLPP, some others felt it was an indication of Sirisena’s desire to work with a new UNF leader. The President started receiving telephone calls from politicians from all political parties inquiring about his statement in Cabinet. On Wednesday (5) the President and Opposition Leader Rajapaksa attended an event at the BMICH and while sitting next to each other, Rajapaksa had asked Sirisena what he had meant in his statement. “The media as usual has reported things that I said as well as didn’t say,” Sirisena had responded. Be that as it may, the SLFP MPs were in a difficult spot following the media reports quoting the President’s statement. On Wednesday evening, the SLFP MPs met at MP Mahinda Amaraweera’s residence and discussed the consequences of the President’s statement. The group then made their way to the President’s residence on Mahagamasekera Mawatha at around 9 p.m. The President had then explained to them what he had said at the Cabinet meeting. The MPs had returned to Amaraweera’s residence. It was then decided to hand over a letter to the President asking him to come forward as the SLFP’s candidate at the next presidential election as the nationalist force against the UNP. MP Nimal Siripala de Silva was assigned to prepare the letter and it was brought to Parliament the following day (6) for the SLFP MPs to sign before handing it over to the President. The SLFP MPs pushing for the SLPP alliance – S.B. Dissanayake, Dilan Perera, Thilanga Sumathipala, and Lakshman Wasantha Perera – have also agreed to hand over the letter. They felt that the contents of the letter highlighting a force against the UNP were a clear path for the SLFP to form an alliance with the SLPP. Accordingly, the SLFP MPs handing over the letter to Sirisena on Thursday afternoon asked him to come forward as the candidate of the anti-UNP camp. Interestingly, by taking such a stance, the SLFP has now thrown the ball into the SLPP court to decide on forming an alliance as well as on whether or not to accept Sirisena’s candidature at the next presidential polls. BOX The latest in the long line of thorns of disagreement has been the proceedings of the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC). Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando, testifying this week, said that on the morning of the 21 April, Sirisena confidante and Head of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) Director Nilantha Jayawardene called him and inquired about Methodist Churches in the city of Colombo, adding that the National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ), which was under the surveillance of the intelligence establishments, were planning to attack Methodist Churches and not Catholic Churches around 8 a.m., nearly 45 minutes before the first attack. It is now believed that as Jayawardene knew about these attacks all along and as Sirisena's close confidante there was absolutely no doubt that Sirisena was duly informed well in advance. As a result, a frantic Sirisena had thrown a tantrum at the urgent Cabinet meeting convened last Friday (7), demanding the PSC proceedings on 21 April Bloody Easter bombings be suspended right away. Sirisena, humiliated with more fingers being pointed at him with the latest evidence revealed at the PSC, even threatened to boycott all official activities and functions until proceedings are suspended but was told that decisions of the PSC are entirely made by the legislature and interferences into it by the Cabinet of Ministers as an organ of the executive, could not be done. Sirisena retorted by saying that he even urged Speaker Karu Jayasuriya to take action to stop PSC proceedings, claiming that it hindered several cases into the 21 April attacks. It is learnt that the President had lambasted the Speaker for not even taking up his communication to the Parliament. It is also learnt that in order to exonerate himself from the 21 April attacks, Sirisena had sought the legal opinion of the newly-appointed Attorney General (AG) Dappula de Livera who assumed duties last 7 May. Even during the meeting with Police chiefs, Sirisena attacked the PSC saying that only retired defence officials could appear before the PSC and adding that no serving defence officer would be allowed to testify as long as he was in power. Many analysts believe that this move is illegal and is a direct interference into the functions of legislature and also an infringement of the legislative powers of the Sri Lankan citizen. As such, it is assumed that the then National Intelligence Chief DIG Sisira Mendis, testified last week that although he took all measures to bring the matter of possible attacks to the notice of Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando and IGP Pujith Jayasundara, the duo took little or notice of the intelligence report. In addition, all political circles are up in arms with evidence given by the former IGP Jayasundara, who claimed that he was coerced by Sirisena to accept the fault for the bombings exonerating the President from all blame, and in the event he does so he would be rewarded with a diplomatic posting. It is no secret that Sirisena is not at all inclined to stop or at least mitigate the ill effects of the ugly tug-of-war between him and the Wickremesinghe administration with the political ballgame not expected to cease any time soon. In fact, Sirisena, agitated that the PSC proceedings were being telecast live to the public, ordered Speaker Karu Jayasuriya to immediately halt last week, which led Leader of the House Minister Lakshman Kiriella to call this a breach of parliamentary privileges. Many analysts opine that once PSC proceedings are concluded and the evidence is finally collated, there would be no doubt over the culpability of Sirisena as Commander-in-Chief and Minister of Defence, in the run-up to the Bloody Easter bombings. Political analysts believe that his sheer fear of the PSC led him to hastily issue a denial whilst attending Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s swearing-in in New Delhi. “There were media reports of a statement made by the Head of the National Intelligence Service, while giving evidence at the Parliamentary Select Committee appointed to look into 21 April terrorist attacks. “The media reports stated that the NSCdid not meet after the month of February 2019. “As there were media reports appearing unofficially on the proceedings of the NSC, it was decided to establish an NSC with a new format, and this has been in operation for more than one year. The new NSC has been meeting every two weeks and, on some occasions the President has convened the meetings of the NSC every week. “Furthermore, on 8 April 2019, the President convened the monthly meeting of the IGP and senior police officers. This meeting was held for more than two hours, and none of the police officers informed the President that advance reports on a possible terrorist attack had been received. “Neither the Defence Secretary, IGP, nor any other officer had informed the President about a warning letter received from a friendly foreign country about the impending 21 April terrorist attacks. “Hence, the President states that the media reports claiming that the President had been informed about the impending attack were absolutely false. “Although Head of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) Director Nilantha Jayawardene was a close confidante of the incumbent President and frequently briefed Sirisena over security, it is highly unlikely that he wouldn’t have known about possible attacks and if so not at all likely to not have briefed Sirisena about them.”