The Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Sri Lanka – Mr. Qi Zhenhong, paid a courtesy call on the newly elected Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka – Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne on Jan. 01 at the Parliamentary premises.
The meeting was also attended by the Secretary General of Parliament, Mrs. Kushani Rohanadeera.
During the meeting, Ambassador Qi Zhenhong presented the letter of greetings from Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China (Speaker of the Parliament of the People’s Republic of China) – Hon. Zhao Leji to the newly elected Speaker.
The Ambassador extended New Year wishes and emphasized the longstanding cooperation between the two nations. He also highlighted the importance of strengthening ties between two legislative bodies in the future, particularly through exchange programs.
The Speaker reflected on his prior experience as Deputy Director of the China – Sri Lanka Friendship National Nephrology Specialized Hospital in Polonnaruwa and expressed gratitude for Chinese development projects in Sri Lanka, which have been highly beneficial to the people of Sri Lanka. He also expressed interest in reviving the Sri Lanka-China Parliamentary Friendship Association in the Tenth Parliament to strengthen ties between two parliaments.
Ambassador Qi further highlighted the preparations underway for the first state visit of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to China, describing that this historical event would further enhance bilateral relations.
The “Report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Establishment and Maintenance of Places of Unlawful Detention and Torture Chambers at the Batalanda Housing Scheme” which was recently tabled in Parliament, has been handed over to the Attorney General by the Presidential Secretariat following a directive from President Anura Kumara Disanayake.
The report, originally compiled over 25 years ago, was tabled in Parliament recently. The Government has taken a decision to take necessary action and as a result, actions have been initiated to hand over the report to the Attorney General’s Department today (29).
The former Vice Chairman of the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB), L.A. Wimalaratne, who was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) earlier today (April 29), has been released on bail.
He was arrested in connection with an investigation into a house in Kataragama, allegedly linked to the family of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) in collaboration with the event rights holder of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) – the IPG Group, has officially announced that the franchise partnerships of the ‘Colombo Strikers’ and ‘Jaffna Kings’ have been terminated.
According to a statement issued today (April 28), the terminations were made due to the respective franchises’ failure to fulfill contractual obligations outlined in their agreements with the IPG Group, which were established at the commencement of their participation in the league.
Accordingly, the forthcoming edition of the Lanka Premier League will feature franchises representing Colombo and Jaffna under new ownership, the statement notes.
As the event rights holder, the IPG Group retains the exclusive rights over the LPL franchise teams and, accordingly, is vested with the authority to transfer and/or assign the ownership rights of the said franchises to interested parties.
Sri Lanka Cricket and The IPG Group remain committed to upholding the integrity, standards, and success of the Lanka Premier League and look forward to an exciting upcoming season with renewed participation.