May 30, Colombo (LNW): A lecturer at the Kotelawala Defence University, was apprehended by the Terrorist Investigation Division (TID) for allegedly making irresponsible statements on national security and sensitive community issues, Police said.
The arrestee, Dr. Punsara Amarasinghe, was accused of making controversial claims about four Sri Lankans recently arrested in India for suspected links to to ISIS during a televised interview on May 25.
Amarasinghe alleged that these individuals were on a list of 300 to 400 radical extremists identified by the commission investigating the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks.
He criticised Sri Lankan law enforcement and intelligence agencies for failing to monitor these suspects adequately.
Additionally, Dr. Amarasinghe incorrectly stated that a 2020 ban on certain textbooks at Madrasas, which purportedly distorted religious teachings, had been lifted in 2023.
He later admitted this was a mistake.
He also made unsubstantiated claims about fundamentalist preachers named Zakir Hussain and PJ, and inaccurately reported on the legal status of an individual named Aadhil X, arrested in 2019, stating he had been acquitted when the case was still ongoing.
The police described Dr. Amarasinghe’s remarks as misleading to the public.
After recording a statement, he was arrested by the TID on Wednesday. Subsequently, he was granted bail by the Fort Magistrate’s Court.
