Sri Lanka’s president Maithripala Sirisena met with extremist Sinhala Buddhist monks who had been calling for the release of the jailed Bodu Bala Sena leader on Monday, and pledged “immediate action to conduct an inquiry” after police launched tear gas at their demonstration.

Sirisena’s office stated that he had “expressed apology over the inconvenience caused to the Buddhist monks” and that he had “instructed to take immediate action to conduct an inquiry on this matter”.

<p>The planned transfer of a CID official responsible for several high profile crime cases involving former government or armed force figures has been cancelled by the police commission according to Daily FT.</p> <p>Nishantha Silva, officer in charge of the organised crimes division at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) was given a transfer order to ordinary duties in Negombo, reportedly on the orders of the Sri Lankan president.</p>

Amnesty International urged Sri Lankan authorities not to impede ongoing investigations following the transfer of Nishantha Silva, the Officer-in-Charge at the Criminal Investigations Department who had been responsible for the investigation of the abduction and murder of 11 Tamil youths by Sri Lankan navy personnel. 

Silva was given a transfer order to ordinary duties in Negombo, reportedly on the orders of the Sri Lankan president. 

The United National Party, together with its coalition partners within the UNF alliance submitted a motion today to suspend Mahinda Rajapaksa's expenditures. 

The motion would see staff salaries and other costs taken away from his budget. 

The motion is expected to be debated on November 29. 

The TNA spokesperson, M A Sumanthiran and Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the JVP leader and Chief Opposition Whip, have said they will support the motion. 

Sri Lanka has been in turmoil for weeks after Rajapaksa was appointed as prime minister by President Sirisena following the shock sacking of the premier Ranil Wickremesinghe. 

Sri Lanka's Speaker today ordered authorities to investigate and present a report on last week's violent scenes in parliament, the Daily Mirror reported. 

Video footage from parliamentary sittings showed fist-fights, objects being thrown at fellow MPs and police officers, including chilli water, as well as an MP wielding a knife and another slapping a police officer. 

The Speaker, Karu Jayasuriya told MPs that "it was the duty of all MPs to avoid the repetition of such ugly scenes in the future."

Violence broke out after Mahinda Rajapaksa rejected the no-confidence motion levelled against him and assumed the bench of the Prime Minister in parliament.

The head of Myanmar’s navy paid a trip Kandy last month, where he met with a senior Sri Lankan military commander and visited the Temple of the Tooth.

Admiral Tin Aung San, Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar’s Navy led a delegation to meet Major General T J Nanayakkara, before both parties visited the “inner chamber for veneration,” according to an official military website.

The Sri Lankan military police announced that it had set up a new checkpoint by the Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu in the Mannar district, as militarisation of the North-East continues, despite sustained opposition from locals.

Sri Lanka’s president has apologised to a group of Sinhala extremist monks from Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), after police launched tear gas at a protest held by the organisation earlier on Monday.

The monks, who were seen posing with a racist Sri Lankan lion flag, were calling for the release of jailed BBS leader Galagodaatte Gnanasara.

Sri Lanka’s parliament met on Monday morning, amidst a week of violence in the chambers, with the session ending after just 10 minutes.

In a relatively peaceful sitting in comparison to last week's clashes, Deputy Speaker Ananda Kumarasiri presided over the brief proceedings. He declared parliament adjourned until Friday the 23^rd of November.

Parliamentary sittings last week were marred by violence, which saw lawmakers with former president Mahinda Rajapaksa hurl chairs and chilli powder at police and opposing MPs, as the political crisis on the island deepened.

 

Parents of Maaveerar (fallen LTTE cadre) were honoured in Batticaloa on Saturday evening ahead of Tamil Remembrance Day (Maaveerar Naal) on November 27. 

The parents of over 50 Maaveerar were given parcels of household items by members of the Tamil National People's Front.