BC will visit and record a statement from Rajapaksa- Justice Minister

Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe on Tuesday (21) told the Parliament that the Bribery Commission will not summon the former President to the commission instead the officials will visit him and record a statement.

Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa for the second time adjourned the session for 30 minutes, as a tense situation arose between the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) MPs and the government.

The Speaker had to adjourn the session for 15 minutes due to a tense situation at the House this morning as well.

The tense situation has risen when a Parliament debate turned violent over the decision of the Bribery Commission to summon former President Mahinda Rajapaksa to appear before the Commission owing to allegations that he offered a bribe to Tissa Attanayake MP to join the former government before the Presidential Elections by offering him a ministerial post.

However, responding to the allegation, Rajapaksa on Monday (20) said that Ranil Wickramasinghe who he explains as a Prime Minister that represents a minority should also be summoned to the Bribery Commission if the authority probes allegations that similar to the accusations leveled against him.

“The people voted to elect their President. The premier post had been offered to Wickramasinghe, as a bribe, for his bid to support the President. Otherwise, he represents a minority. Wickramasinghe might also be summoned to the BC for soliciting a bribe,” Mahinda Rajapaksa told the reporters.

Over 114 Parliamentarians signed a petition and handed it over to the Speaker against the decision of the Bribery Commission as well. Subsequently, the Opposition MPs have also called off a daylong demonstration that they staged inside the chambers.