Fugitive Arjuna Mahendran located in Singapore

Colombo (News 1st) - A request has been made by fugitive former Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendranfor copies of the arrests warrant and evidence against him on the Bond Scam. At the Fort Magistrates Court today, Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne ordered the Attorney General to report at the next hearing on what legal measures taken to bring Arjuna Mahendran back to the country. Senior Deputy Solicitor General Haripriya Jayasundara explained that Arjuna Mahendran, the first suspect of the magisterial inquiry had requested copies of his arrest warrant and evidence against him through INTERPOL in Singapore. FUGITIVE LOCATED Through this request, it is abundantly clear that Arjuna Mahendran is, in fact, receding in Singapore. It is unacceptable that the Attorney General's Department appeared to have difficulty in providing INTERPOL Singapore with details of their case against the fugitive former governor, who is wanted by the Fort Magistrate's Court. A simple examination of the case history will reveal that : 01. There exists the Presidential Commission of Inquiry report into the Bond Scam. All 10,000 plus pages. 02. Is there no B report filed in Court? 03. There exist several hours of media reports and hundreds of columns of newspaper print that explains in great detail the actions of Arjuna Mahendran. Let us remember that the Commission of Inquiry report described Arjuna Mahendran's actions in sharing sensitive and confidential information as Mala Fide in the interest and to the benefit of Perpetual Treasuries Limited. The question now arises as to why the Attorney General is on an apparent go-slow to supply the information wanted by Singapore. Compliance of this request must easily be elementary. It has been evident that the Attorney General did indeed extend kid glove treatment to the Prime Minister when he appeared as a witness at the Commission of Inquiry. The same almost flippant treatment was afforded to senior UNP officials and cabinet ministers Kabir Hashim and Malik Samarawickrama. No such kid glove treatment was extended to the 60 plus other witnesses or notably to then Minister Ravi Karunanayake. The Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya pointedly did not permit messers Dappula De Livera and Yasatha Kodagoda from questioning either the Prime Minister or Minister Hashim and Samarawickrama. Instead, the PM was sent a written questionnaire. However, the Attorney General did permit De Livera and Kodagoda to question Ravi Karunanayke extensively and exhaustively. A fundamental aspect of cross-examination to elicit facts from the known to the unknown was thus conveniently evaded. Why would the Attorney General act in a such a way? Is it to protect the Prime Minister? The Prime Minister confirmed in a statement in Parliament that it was he who insisted on the change in the system of awarding bonds. Arjuna Mahendran confirmed that he had only acted upon the instructions of the Prime Minister. The Attorney General could be in line for a promotion to the highest court in the near future. Is this the reason?