Cardinal, Catholic Church misled over Easter Sunday attacks: State Minister

• The State Minister came out with some information that have been uncovered by the police in Parliament last week

By Yohan Perera   

Archbishop of Colombo Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith who has been coming up with various allegations with regard to investigations on the Easter Sunday attacks is being misled by a certain group, a State Minister said.    

 State Minister of Defence Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon said the Cardinal is misled by certain groups who want to politicize the Easter Sunday attacks.   

“Government had briefed Archbishop of Colombo Cardinal Ranjith on the latest information that have been uncovered on the motives behind the Easter Sunday attacks, the State Minister said. State Minister Bandara came up with this remark in response to an inquiry made by Daily Mirror as to whether the government intends briefing the church leaders on the latest information uncovered by the police on the real motives behind the Easter Sunday attacks. The state minister came out with some information that have been uncovered by the police in Parliament last week.   

“We have met the church leaders and briefed them about the findings on the Easter Sunday mayhem. However, it is up to the judiciary to uncover the truth behind the attack. Let us allow the judiciary to come out with a verdict without politicizing the unfortunate incident further,” he said at a trial at bar comprising three high court judges appointed to hear the case. 

 
The state minister told Parliament earlier that the suicide bombers have revealed they were to destroy non-believers of Islam.   

He said some suicide bombers who blew themselves up in churches and hotels on Easter Sunday in April 2019 have met at a hotel in Mount Lavinia prior to the attacks and released a video citing reasons for the impending attacks   

“In this video, the bombers cite a number of reasons for the attack. The reasons include insulting Islamism, attacking mosques in Sri Lanka. The churches in Sri Lanka were to be attacked in retaliation to the attack of a mosque in New Zealand few days before the Easter Sunday bombings. The bombers have claimed they were to target three hotels as those from the West who harass Muslims were holidaying in those hotels.   
“This is the truth with regard to Easter Sunday attacks though many allegations are made against various persons including the intelligence units. Making allegations after incidents have been a common occurrence both here and abroad. Late President Ranasinghe Premadasa was alleged to have been involved in the killing of Major General Denzil Kobbekaduwa and other senior military officers in 1992 while the British Royal family was blamed for the tragic death of Princess Diana in 1997,” he said.   

• Let us allow the judiciary to come out with a verdict without politicizing the unfortunate incident further