Former MP J. Sri Ranga and 5 others granted bail

Former MP J. Sri Ranga and five others have been granted bail by the Vavuniya Magistrate’s Court, in connection with a fatal accident in 2011. 

The Attorney General on Wednesday ordered the arrest of the former parliamentarian and 5 other suspects on the charge of concealing information pertaining to the incident.

The Attorney General had instructed the Director of the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) to carry out the arrest over the fatal accident that occurred at Settikulam in 2011.

Following the AG’s order, the six suspects had presented themselves before the Vavuniya Magistrate’s Court today (18).

When the case was taken up for hearing, the Vavuniya Magistrate ordered that the suspects be released each on a cash bail of Rs 50,000 and two personal bails of Rs 200,000 each.

The Magistrate also ordered to handover the passports of the suspects to the court and ordered them to give statements to the police.

The case was postponed until March 20, 2020.

The AG had ordered the arrest of six suspects including the former MP in connection with a case regarding an accident which had taken place on March 30, 2011 when MP Sri Ranga’s unregistered vehicle had crashed into a roadside tree near the Settikulam Hospital, resulting in the death of a Police Sergeant serving in the MP’s security detail.

The MP had previously claimed that the vehicle was driven by the deceased Police officer at the time of the accident, however investigations had alter revealed that the vehicle had been driven by MP J. Sri Ranga at the time of the accident.

The accident had reportedly occurred as the group including the MP was travelling towards Mannar on the Mannar-Medawachchiya road.

Accordingly the Attorney General Dappula de Livera had ordered the arrest of suspects including former MP J. Sri Ranga, former SSP of Vavuniya, the former SP and former OIC of the Settikulam Police Station.