IGP didn’t take any preventive measures to avert Easter attack: Former DIG

IGP Pujith Jayasundara, who was sent on compulsory leave, should have act immediately to prevent Easter Sunday attacks after receiving information about possible attacks from Islamic extremists, retired Head of State Intelligence Service (SIS), DIG Keerthi Gajanayake informed the PCoI probing Easter Sunday attacks yesterday.

Testifying before the Commission, Gajanayake said that on April 09, 2019, State Intelligence Services (SIS) had sent a warning to the IGP about a possible terror attack which mentioned that Leader of National Thauheed Jamaat (NTJ) Zahran and his associates planning a terror attack within the country. The IGP had sent copies of these warnings to several SDIGs under him indicating a note ‘For Necessary Action' (FNA).

He informed the Commission that the SIS warning letter about the possible terror attack was an information received by the foreign intelligence agency and IGP should have taken assistance from an agent from the particular foreign intelligence service to verify the particular information.

Gajanayake also informed the Commission that before starting his service, the SIS had started a separate desk on analysing Islamic extremism in 2002 because there were reports on spreading extremist ideologies within the country. (Yoshitha Perera)