In a letter to Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has responded to the recent statement made by Minister of Justice, Prisons Affairs and Constitutional Reforms Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, against the judiciary.

The JSC said it has a conducted an observation into the Minister’s statement.

The documents tabled by the Justice Minister during his parliamentary speech have been forwarded by the Justice Ministry to the JSC.

The JSA observations have been communicated in a letter signed by Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya in his capacity as the President of the JSC and JSC members Justice Vijith Malalgoda and Justice Gamini Amarasekara.

The speaker confirmed this to News 1st today and said he had recieved the observation by the JSC.

Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said it would be tabled in Parliament on July 9.

In a statement on June 24, the Judicial Service Association said that it observed a specific effort to discredit impartial judges, is unfolding in parts.

The Judicial Service Association points out that one of the steps in the discrediting effort is to create ideologies that will cause personal discredit to the judges who have taken important decisions for the well-being of the judicial system after they are transferred.

The Judicial Service Association serves as the premier professional organization for District Judges and Magistrates in Sri Lanka.

(newsfirst.lk)
(Except for the headline, this story, originally published by newsfirst.lk has not been edited by SLM staff) 

The Sri Lanka Navy’s Special Investigation Unit (SIU) has arrested two Navy personnel suspected of involvement in large-scale drug operations.

The suspects are members of the Navy Intelligence Division.

The arrested individuals will be handed over to the Police Narcotics Bureau for further legal proceedings.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe announced that the Sri Lankan government expects to conclude discussions and reach an agreement with private bondholders on restructuring the country’s debt next week.

He made this statement while addressing the “Ekwa Jayagamu” public rally in Matara on Sunday (30).

In a significant milestone, Sri Lanka recently sealed a deal with the Official Creditor Committee (OCC) to restructure the debt owed to its bilateral lenders, including India, and signed a separate agreement with China for debt treatment.

Wickremesinghe noted that since signing the agreements with bilateral creditors, representatives of private bondholders have begun discussions with the government.

“As of now, we have successfully achieved progress on both sides. We are expecting to successfully conclude this by next week,” he said.

The President also announced that elections, including the Presidential Election, General Election, and Provincial Council Election, will take place within this year and next year.

The United National Party (UNP) and a section of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) launched the President’s election campaign island-wide, starting from Matara under the theme ‘Ekwa Jayagamu’ (Victory Through Unity).

The rally was attended by Ministers Prasanna Ranatunga, Kanchana Wijesekera, Ali Sabry, Harin Fernando, Manusha Nanayakkara, Ramesh Pathirana, Douglas Devananda, North Western Province Governor Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, and President’s Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor on National Security Sagala Ratnayake.