The “white van” which was taken into custody in Mirihana by Police on Tuesday had an altered number due to an administrative failure on the part of the Army, highly placed defence sources told the Daily News yesterday.
The van, in which three Army personnel attached to Major General Prasanna de Silva were travelling, had been a vehicle recovered from Vellimullivaikkal during the final phase of war.
“It was not unusual as vehicles recovered during the final phase of war are now being used by the Army for various purposes,” a top Army official said yesterday.
The van taken into custody on Tuesday, he said, had the same “altered number” it had when it was used by the LTTE. “Not re-registering the Van after its recovery was an administrative failure on the part of the Army,” he added.
By the time the van was taken into custody on Tuesday, Major General Silva was on his way to Kandy.
Three members of his security detail were travelling in the van, with his official weapon, to join the Major General in Kandy. However, the Van was stopped at Mirihana by Police and the Army personnel were arrested on the grounds that they had a weapon in their possession.
Army sources also added that the Military Police took an extraordinarily long time to issue a report clearing the Army personnel and the Major General’s weapon. Using this delay, National Freedom Front leader Wimal Weerawansa, addressing a press conference in Colombo, said there was an attempt to harm the lives of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.
Meanwhile, Army Spokesman Brigadier K.J. Jayaweera addressing a press conference at the Defence Ministry said, preliminary investigations of the Sri Lanka Military Police into Monday (20) night’s arrest of three civil-clad Army personnel with a weapon in the Mirihana area while travelling in a white van, had confirmed that neither those soldiers, nor the vehicle in question, were involved in any criminal act whatsoever.
“But, necessary legal action would be instituted against breach of military law, if any upon completion of Military Police investigations,” Brigadier Jayaweera added.
“On the instructions of the Defence Secretary and the Commander of the Army, Military Police are conducting a parallel investigation and the Military Police have been asked to fully cooperate with Police investigations too. Like in previous instances, impartial investigations, despite ranks are underway and more information could be revealed afterwards upon completion of investigations,” he added.
Major General Prasanna de Silva was known in the Army as a close associate of former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa. He presently plays a coordinating role under Defence Secretary B.M.U.D. Basnayake.
Courtesy:Daily News