Court issues notice on MP, six others

The Batticaloa Magistrate’s Court yesterday issued notices on six suspects including Parliamentarian S. Viyalandiran, who arrived at the protest staged near the Kallady Bridge in Batticaloa against the burial of the remains of an Easter Sunday suicide bomber at the Kalliyankadu cemetery, the police said.

Police Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekera said notices were issued on the five suspects to be present at the Batticaloa Magistrate Court, this Friday (30).

No one had been arrested during the protest but four protesters were injured when the police attempted to disperse them.

Remains of the 27-year-old suicide bomber, Mohammed Nazar Mohammed Azhar, who was responsible for bombing the Zion Church in Batticaloa was buried at the Kalliyankadu Cemetery, on a court order of the Batticaloa Magistrate, SP Gunasekera said.

He said the order was issued to the Batticaloa District Secretary to bury the remains at the Kalliyankadu Cemetery, last Monday (26).

"Residents near the cemetery launched the protest on Tuesday night (27) against the burial of the suicide bomber. The protesters blocked the Rosario Junction at the Batticaloa-Trincomalee Main Road. They blocked the Kallady Bridge area on the Batticaloa-Ampara Main Road," he said.

Therefore, the police had to use tear gas to disperse the protesters," he said.

Measures had been taken to deploy additional security personnel to the area and the situation there is now under control, he added. (Chaturanga Samarawickrama)