Two navy personnel to be arrested: PHU claims

The Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) today claimed that it had received information from the CID that two navy personnel, Lt. Commander Prasad Hettiarachchi and N.G. Wickramasuriya, are to be arrested this week to please the separatists who back the government.

It said naval intelligence officer R.P.S. Ranasinghe and another naval ranker Udaya Kumara had already been arrested on baseless allegations on March 3.

“Ranasinghe and Udaya Kumara were arrested in connection with the abduction and disappearance of several Tamils. If they have committed such a crime, there is nothing wrong with arresting them. But, no complaint has been lodged in this connection by anyone. These arrests are attempts at weakening the morale of the military to get their signature for bogus confessions,” PHU General Secretary Udaya Gammanpila told a news conference.

He said arrested military personnel are being given the assurance of a safe life abroad if they claimed it was former defence secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and former Navy Commander Wasantha Karannagoda who instructed them to abduct the people.

He said naval intelligence service officer Ranasinghe, who is in custody, was among the nine Navy personnel who had been promoted based on their performance in the field.

“Commander Ranasinghe caught an LTTEer who was delivering a truck full of bombs to Colombo. That arrested LTTEer had been released today and the one who caught him had been put behind bars. Ranasinghe was earlier arrested in connection with the Raviraj killing but he was later acquitted after a year spent in prison,” he said.

The MP requested President Maithripala Sirisena to look into the issue. (Lahiru Pothmulla)