Court orders arrest of Basil in Rs. 7.8m poll funds case

The Colombo Fort Magistrate's Court has ordered the arrest of former Minister Basil Rajapaksa, along with Tourism Promotion Bureau Chairman Bhashwara Gunaratne, Managing Director Rumi Jauffer, and several others. This action is related to the alleged misuse of Rs. 7.8 million from the Tourism Promotion Authority during the 2014 Uva Provincial Council election campaign. Magistrate Pasan Amarasena instructed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to arrest the suspects and bring them to court, following a submission that they would be charged under the Public Property Act based on the Attorney General's advice. The CID reported that efforts to apprehend the suspects at their homes were unsuccessful as they were not there. The Magistrate also placed a travel ban on the suspects, directing that the Controller of Immigration and Emigration be informed. Investigations suggest that the funds were used to produce 12,000 T-shirts featuring an image of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa on one side and a political party's name on the other. According to the CID, these T-shirts were later handed out at a political event in the Monaragala District.