The Colombo High Court has acquitted former Minister Rajitha Senaratne and two others in connection with the controversial ‘white van’ press conference held in 2019.
On September 12, 2022, Senaratne and former State Pharmaceutical Corporation (SPC) chairman Rumi Mohommed Azeem pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.
The press conference, held in the lead-up to the 2019 Presidential Election, featured two individuals, Anthony Douglas Fernando and Athula Sanjeewa Madanayake, who made several explosive claims.
Fernando alleged that he had been a “white van” driver involved in abductions, while Madanayake claimed to have transported gold from LTTE-held areas.
The statements sparked controversy, alleging incidents of abductions, assassinations, robberies, and forced disappearances during former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s administration.
Senaratne, who served as Health Minister was arrested for organizing the press conference and was later released on bail after the court observed that the charges levelled against Senaratne were bailable offences.
In 2023 a witness in the case claimed that he was forced by a Director of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at that time to give false testimony before the Magistrate Court. (Islandnews)
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