A former Sri Lankan Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) is alleged to have covered up evidence in the case of murdered Tamil journalist Dharmeratnam “Taraki” Sivaram, reports The Sunday Leader.

Sarath Lugoda, the former DIG and the ex-director of the Colombo Crimes Division (CCD), is alleged to have concealed evidence that the murder may have been ordered from authorities high up in the Sri Lankan government, and released the main suspects accused of the assassination. The Sunday Leader says that he is to face questioning shortly.

Today marks the 29th anniversary of the death of Lt Maalathy.

Maalathy was the first female fighter in the armed struggle against the Sri Lankan state oppression to lose her life. Malathy was killed at the age of 20, on the 10th of October 1987, during a confrontation with the Indian Peace Keeping Forces (IPKF) in Jaffna.

The following account is told by a cadre that was by her side.

Sri Lanka’s Minister of Defence said his government would not allow the release of land in the North-East currently occupied by the military, if it meant land would be returned to “LTTE supporters”.

"There is no requirement to provide lands to LTTE supporters or to reduce security in the North and East,” said Ruwn Wijewardene at a press conference on Friday. “We are only providing required land for the people living in the area".

Sri Lanka’s Special Task Force arrested five people in the town of Muttur in Trincomalee, after the reported discovery of explosives on Saturday.

A joint raid was carried out by STF commandos and Special Operation Unit members of the Trincomalee Police, reports The Island. The arrested were all Tamil and Muslim, police added.

The raid was reportedly set in place following a tip off. Police claim to have recovered 17 kilograms of explosives in total, from two different houses in Sampur and Muttur.

Photograph: ColomboPage

Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the Tamil National Alliance has agreed to ensure Buddhism is protected and continues to hold the foremost place on the island, in a speech this week, a charge that the party has denied .

India is planning on building a sub-sea power cable to Sri Lanka, the country's Union Power Ministry told The Hindu on Sunday. 

“Currently, we are supplying power to Bangladesh, Nepal and Myanmar and importing power from Bhutan. Now we are also thinking to supply power to Sri Lanka through sub-sea underground cable. We haven’t started as yet, but we have found a new technology for sub-sea cable,” the Union Power Secretary PK Pujari was quoted as saying. 

The UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues, Rita Izsák-Ndiaye arrives in Sri Lanka today on a 10 day visit. 

“Experience has shown that the recognition and promotion of minority rights are critical, if not requisite, in achieving long-lasting peace and reconciliation, particularly in countries such as Sri Lanka that were once divided by ethnic conflicts,” Ms Izsák-Ndiaye said ahead of her visit. 

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) warned Sri Lanka's new anti-terror act which was intended to replace the widely criticised Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) "may even by worse than the PTA". 

Describing the new act as "old wine in a new bottle", the TNA spokesperson, M A Sumanthiran warned it would likely include indefinite detention and the acceptance of confessions told to police officers at time of arrest. 

He told the New Indian Express on Sunday, “It may even be worse than the PTA going by the influence of the Security Establishment on government’s thinking on these matters."

The British Tamil Conservatives hosted their annual reception at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham on Tuesday. Held in the prestigious Castle Fine Art gallery, the BTC event has become a popular fixture in the conference calendar, and as customary was attended by several MPs and high-profile Conservatives who expressed their support for the Tamil community in their struggle for human rights.

Sri Lanka’s president assured Sinhala Buddhist monks that his government would not pass any laws affecting the clergy, without agreement from them.

Any decision regarding laws on the Buddha Sasana would be passed “only with the blessings of the Sangha led by the Mahanayake Theras,” The Island quoted Mr Sirisena as saying.

Speaking after attending a Buddhist religious ceremony in Peradeniya, Mr Sirisena explained that the passing of a law around the Buddha Sasana has been postponed until advice has been sough from senior Buddhist monks.