by Zacki Jabbar

Accusing the Rajapaksas and  their henchmen of  masterminding  Friday’s shooting incident at Bloemendhal Road, Colombo 13, which left one dead and 13 injured including two seriously, Finance Minister Ravi Karunayake said  that an attempt was being made to revive the fear psychosis that prevailed in the country for a decade prior to January 8.

Addressing a news conference in Colombo, Karunanayake who is running at the  August 17 General Election on the UNP-led United National Front Good Governance ( UNFGG )  ticket, said that  the violence directed at UNPers who were campaigning for him at Bloemendhal Road on Friday morning was not an isolated incident but a continuation of the unlawful activity witnessed over the previous 10 days.

” Last week a remote controlled bomb was  found in Ambalangoda. The very next day  three persons armed with a pistol were detected while traveling in a white van at Mirihana. They were said to be former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksas security personnel. Thereafter attempts to smuggle in many ethanol, liquor and cigarette containers were detected. Yesterday a dead body in a bag was found at the Pettah private bus stand,” he said.

These were not accidental revelations but an attempt by agents of the Rajapaksas  to butress their claim that the security situation had deteriorated due to a revival of underworld and LTTE terrorism, he added.

Karunanayake alleged that there was nexus between recent election speeches made by some leading pro-Mahinda UPFA politicians and the unlawful polls related incidents.

“Today’s newspapers have a picture of Gotabhaya Rajapaksa with a drug kingpin. It is the Rajapaksas who are the terrorists. Having unleashed State terrorism through their underworld gangs for a decade, they are now trying to revive their past.”  

“Don’t be surprised if very soon a section of the UPFA explodes  a bomb  at one of its own meetings and then cry out that the LTTE was  trying to eliminate Mahinda,” he added.

 ”The Rajapaksas are desperate since the Maithripala- Ranil government has re-established good governance and the rule of law,” he said. “They are creating mayhem in an attempt to recapture power , but the people  would defeat their machinations.”

Karunanayake appealed to what he termed “elements within the police” who are protecting some underworld figures and the Rajapaksas to act impartially and arrest the culprits responsible for the recent crime wave.

Courtesy:Sunday Island