Hurly-burly was done over the weekend, with the SLPP and the government holding two rallies in Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa, respectively, but the propaganda brigades of the JVP/NPP and the Opposition are still clashing over crowd sizes. The SLPP and its allies are over the moon about their rally’s impressive turnout. The JVP-NPP social media activists claim that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s meeting had a higher crowd density.

The government declared ahead of its Polonnaruwa event that it would be a gathering of farmers and their representatives, but the SLPP made no bones about the fact that its rally would be a show of strength. The arrest and remand of NPP National Organiser Namal Rajapaksa provided the Opposition with a fresh rallying point, and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s participation at its rally helped the SLPP attract large crowds. The SLPP’s success in Anuradhapura will prompt the NPP to hold a bigger rally either there or elsewhere. It will also encourage the Opposition to hold more such rallies.

However, the question is whether crowd sizes are a reliable indicator of the real strength of political parties. One may recall that in 1977, the then Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s election rallies attracted large crowds. But the SLFP suffered a humiliating defeat at the general election that followed. It was reduced to a mere eight seats, and the UNP secured a five-thirds majority. It took the SLFP and its allies 17 years to make a comeback.

Ahead of the 2010 presidential election, common Opposition candidate and former war-winning Army Commander Gen. Sarath Fonseka held a series of huge rallies across the country, so much so that at one of them he threatened to have all members of the Rajapaksa family incarcerated immediately after securing the presidency. He lost the election, and the Rajapaksas had him thrown behind bars. Sixteen years on, the members of the Rajapaksa family and their associates are accusing the incumbent government of having launched a political witch-hunt against them.

After securing a second term in 2010, President Mahinda Rajapaksa also held a series of successful rallies across the country, and his election meetings attracted large crowds. But he lost to Maithripala Sirisena, who was widely considered a dark horse, in the 2015 presidential race.

In this day and age, crowd sizes could be deceptive. Astroturfing or creating an impression of widespread grassroots support for a party or an individual, where little such support exists, is the name of the game in politics. Some manpower agencies can be hired to bus crowds to political rallies, as Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapaksha, who contested the last presidential election, revealed during a campaign rally, claiming that some of his rivals used paid participants to create the illusion of widespread public enthusiasm and support. The rent-a-crowd industry is said to thrive during elections.

There is no better test of a political party’s strength than an election. Therefore, if the JVP-NPP government is confident that it is more popular than its political opponents, it ought to hold the much-delayed Provincial Council (PC) elections instead of using various ruses to postpone them indefinitely. Last week, it unashamedly extended the term of the Parliamentary Committee tasked with electoral reforms until December 2026, prompting the Opposition to withdraw from it. The PC polls have not been held since 2017, when the UNP-led Yahapalana government postponed them because it was wary of facing any electoral contest. The JVP, the SLFP, the SLMC, the ITAK and the Joint Opposition, which later became the SLPP, helped that administration amend the Provincial Council Elections Act and postpone the PC polls. What is needed to hold the PC elections soon is a simple amendment to the PC Elections Act to enable the Election Commission to conduct them under the Proportional Representation system. Perhaps, a string of defeats the JVP/NPP has suffered at cooperative elections may have prompted the government not to hold the PC polls.

All signs are that the government will continue postponing the PC elections until the next presidential election, with only political dog-and-pony shows in the meantime.

The investigation into the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks, which claimed the lives of 278 people and left more than 500 others injured, took a dramatic new turn before the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court today, as prosecutors presented what they described as two significant new pieces of evidence relating to alleged links between former State Intelligence Service Director Suresh Salley and others connected to the attacks.

Making extensive submissions before court, Additional Solicitor General Dileepa Peiris outlined what investigators believe to be a series of intelligence failures, suppressed warnings and suspicious actions by multiple individuals prior to the devastating attacks of April 2019.

One of the key pieces of evidence presented to court stemmed from information allegedly provided by a former military intelligence informant known as “Thambiyan,” a former LTTE Sea Tiger operative who had subsequently worked with Indian intelligence before returning to Sri Lanka.

According to the prosecution, the informant had been supplying intelligence regarding Zahran Hashim and his activities as early as 2018. Court was told that the intelligence had been passed through established military intelligence channels, first to an officer named Suranga, then to Colonel Ranawera, who was expected to relay the information to then Director of Military Intelligence Chula Kodituwakku.

However, prosecutors alleged that despite possessing detailed intelligence relating to Zahran and his network, the information was not shared with investigators in a timely manner.

The Additional Solicitor General told court that the same informant had identified Zahran and his associates as being responsible for the murder of two police officers in Vavunathivu, yet efforts had allegedly been made to portray the killings as an LTTE-linked operation and to implicate former LTTE member Ajanthan instead.

The court heard that while an officer in charge of the Third Military Intelligence Corps had informed the Criminal Investigation Department only nine days before the Easter attacks that Zahran’s group was responsible for the Vavunathivu murders, the informant had provided that same information almost immediately after the killings took place.

Prosecutors argued that the failure to share such intelligence with investigators raised serious concerns and had given rise to suspicions that certain intelligence officers may have participated in a broader conspiracy connected to the attacks.

The prosecution also unveiled further details regarding the movements of Zahran Hashim prior to the attacks. Court was told that intelligence agencies had gathered information indicating that Zahran had travelled to India on several occasions using sea routes from Mannar.

According to the submissions, investigators believe that upon returning to Sri Lanka, Zahran received political protection allegedly linked to former Minister Rishad Bathiudeen. The Additional Solicitor General further alleged that financial assistance for these overseas trips had been provided by businessman Alavudeen, identified in court as the father-in-law of Inshaf, one of the suicide bombers who detonated explosives at the Shangri-La Hotel during the Easter attacks.

The prosecution further told court that following the attacks, Inshaf’s wife had been detained and questioned by the Criminal Investigation Department under detention orders. However, she had allegedly been released before the expiry of those orders following the change of government and the election of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Court was also informed that Alavudeen had played a leading role in managing Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s election campaign activities in the Mannar area.

In another development, Additional Solicitor General Peiris sought a travel ban against former Police Inspector Konara Bandara, who had previously served in the police unit responsible for investigating extremist activities within the public sector. The court approved the request.

Explaining the basis for the application, the Additional Solicitor General told court that during his tenure in the State Intelligence Service, Konara Bandara had prepared two separate intelligence lists containing the names of individuals linked to extremist activities. One list reportedly contained 94 names, while the second included 126 names.

Significantly, prosecutors stated that both lists contained the names of Zahran Hashim, several of the suicide bombers involved in the Easter attacks and other individuals currently facing trial before the Colombo High Court.

Court was also informed that on April 3, 2019, intelligence received from foreign sources regarding Zahran had been transmitted by then SIS Director Nilantha Jayawardena through official channels to Konara Bandara for follow-up action.

According to the prosecution, Konara Bandara subsequently travelled to Kattankudy and met Shayni Moulavi, the younger brother of both Zahran Hashim and Rilwan. Despite Shayni Moulavi’s name reportedly appearing on one of the extremist watch lists, he was not arrested. Instead, prosecutors alleged that a meeting took place and no enforcement action followed.

The Additional Solicitor General argued that had Shayni Moulavi been arrested at that stage, investigators may have had an opportunity to apprehend Zahran and potentially disrupt events leading to the Easter attacks. Investigators are now examining whether those circumstances themselves form part of a wider conspiracy.

The court was further informed that investigators intend to obtain statements from several Members of Parliament, including the Leader of the Opposition, regarding public remarks made over the years concerning Suresh Salley and matters connected to the Easter attacks investigations.

Peiris emphasized that Salley had not been arrested because of any personal decision by prosecutors or the Criminal Investigation Department, stating that concerns regarding Salley’s alleged role had first been raised publicly by opposition political figures within Parliament. Investigators now intend to formally record statements from those individuals regarding the allegations they previously made.

Appearing for Suresh Salley, President’s Counsel Shavindra Fernando strongly challenged the prosecution’s submissions. He argued that the extensive claims placed before court constituted allegations rather than evidence and maintained that information contained in B Reports should not be treated as established facts.

Fernando told court that while he would not respond to each accusation individually, none of the matters raised by the prosecution amounted to evidence before court.

After hearing submissions from both sides, the court postponed further proceedings until September 22.

A complaint has been lodged with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) over the alleged promotion of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) at the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) rally held in Anuradhapura.

Police Spokesman ASP F.U. Wootler confirmed today that the complaint was lodged by a group of civil society members named “joint opposition” following allegations that statements made during the rally amounted to promoting or supporting the LTTE, which remains a proscribed organisation in Sri Lanka.

On Sunday, the opposition had raised concerns over remarks reportedly made during the rally, where several political figures, including former Minister Wimal Weerawansa and Parliamentarian Archchuna Ramanathan, were present.

Addressing the rally, MP Archchuna Ramanathan referred to himself as a “Tiger” and criticized the people for electing a fox, referring to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

The move came as a surprise even to SLPP supporters who have long been critical of any reference to the LTTE but instead saw SLPP politicians cheering when the LTTE name was mentioned on stage in Anuradhapura.

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka must establish an independent maritime regulatory body to safeguard fair competition and draw foreign investment before its current growth window closes, United States Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) Chairman Laura DiBella said.

Setting up a dedicated regulatory body — similar to the FMC — would monitor ocean carrier alliances, prevent cartel behavior, deter rate exploitation, and provide clear rules that give global investors confidence, she said.

“A clear regulatory framework de-risks the market for foreign direct investment. Capital avoids environments with arbitrary constraints or excessive risk,” DiBella told the Colombo International Maritime and Logistics Conference.

Colombo has become a critical link for American supply chains, handling approximately 500,000 containers representing 30 billion US dollars in cargo value, DiBella said.

Seaports are the foundation of economic growth, DiBella said, but warned that governments must stick to a supporting role and allow private enterprise to drive commercial expansion.

She said the FMC is ready to help Sri Lanka structure a fluid, competitive framework to keep trade lanes moving.

During an ensuing panel discussion, business leaders and regional experts warned that Sri Lanka must move beyond basic transshipment and eliminate local bottlenecks to maintain its commercial edge.

Ashraf Omar, Chief Executive Officer of Brandix Sri Lanka, pointed out that export manufacturing is rapidly shifting from forecast-driven orders to fast, demand-driven deliveries where fashion products lose value if they do not reach retail shelves on time.

“We might shave five days off factory production, only for the finished goods to sit at a port or with a freight forwarder for ten days. That waiting time wipes out every efficiency gained on the factory floor,” Omar said.

Omar urged officials to avoid distant 25-year plans and focus immediately on digital solutions that cut cargo transfer times to minutes, enabling finished goods to move directly from factory floors onto ships.

René Piil Pedersen, Managing Director of A P Moller – Maersk Singapore, said emerging hubs unlock real transformation when port terminals are combined with landside warehousing and free-trade logistics.

Citing Singapore as an example, Pedersen pointed out that Scottish distillers ship Scotch whisky into Singapore’s free trade zone, where bottles receive market-specific labels inside warehouses before being distributed to destinations like Manila or Jakarta. Singapore captures this high-margin value addition despite producing no whisky of its own, an opportunity Sri Lanka can easily replicate along its busy sea lanes, he said.

Pedersen also urged Colombo to prepare facilities to supply clean alternative marine fuels like green methanol to passing fleets.

Closing the panel, FMC Commissioner Robert Harvey called on authorities to treat the national logistics sector like a competitive commercial enterprise, stressing that transparent regulations are critical to attract private capital and advanced technology.