Deshabandu’s appointment an insult to Easter Sunday Bomb victims : Cardinal

By Yohan Perera  
Appointing DIG Deshabandu Tennekoon as the acting IGP is an insult to Easter Sunday bomb victims, Archbishop of Colombo Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith said today.  “Some 273 people were killed as a result of Easter Sunday bombing and further 500 were injured. The Presidential Commission of Inquiry had blamed DIG Tennekoon for not being able to prevent Easter Sunday attacks. 

The Commission has recommended disciplinary action against him. It is a crime to appoint such a person as the acting IGP,” Cardinal Ranjith said in a special statement.    “There are other allegations against Tennekoon. This include his failure to curb violence on May 9 last year and the action taken by him to request the Fort police to handover cash that was received from the President’s House to the Minister of Public  Security. This action shows that Tennekoon has no proper understanding on national security. He is not fit to become the acting IGP in such circumstances,” he added.  
“ It is clear that some power hungry group has influenced the President to make this appointment. We vehemently condemn this move by the President ,” he also said.