2 lawmakers from Sri Lanka's ruling party arrested, top cop quizzed over May 9 attacks

At least two persons have been arrested for assault on him.Several ruling party politicians are among those that the Attorney General had instructed to institute action.If there is direct, circumstantial and technical evidence against the 22 suspects, they should be arrested as soon as possible, the Attorney Generals Department had said further.President Gotabayas elder brother and prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned last week after violence erupted following the attack on the anti-government protesters by his supporters.

Sri Lanka's two ruling party lawmakers were arrested on Tuesday for their alleged involvement in the violent attacks on the peaceful anti-government protesters near the Temple Trees and at Galle Face Green last week that injured over 200 people.

Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) MPs Sanath Nishantha and Milan Jayatilake were arrested for their alleged involvement in the attacks, police spokesman Nihal Thalduwa said.

Both the lawmakers were seen among the attackers.

Also, Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police for Western Province Deshabandu Tennakoon was quizzed by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) on Tuesday following a directive by the Attorney General.

On Monday, the Attorney General had instructed the CID to arrest 22 suspects including MPs Johnston Fernando, Milan Jayatilake, Sanath Nishantha, Sanjeewa Edirimanna and Senior DIG Tennakoon, if sufficient evidence is available against them over the attack on the anti-government protesters in Colombo last week.

Earlier Tuesday, it was reported that the Inspector-General of Police has directed the CID to act in compliance with the directives of the Attorney General with regard to the investigations into the incidents. The Attorney General's Department also instructed the CID to file cases against the arrested suspects under the Criminal Procedure Code.

Tennakoon has been accused of encouraging the pro-government group to attack people who had been protesting peacefully for over a month seeking resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa for his mishandling of the ongoing economic crisis.

Tennakoon himself was attacked and admitted to a hospital. At least two persons have been arrested for assault on him.

Several ruling party politicians are among those that the Attorney General had instructed to institute action.

If there is direct, circumstantial and technical evidence against the 22 suspects, they should be arrested as soon as possible, the Attorney General's Department had said further.

President Gotabaya's elder brother and prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned last week after violence erupted following the attack on the anti-government protesters by his supporters. The attack triggered widespread violence against Rajapaksa loyalists, leaving nine people dead.

At least 78 parliamentarians, including Mahinda Rajapaksa, had faced arson attacks on their private properties during the unrest on May 9.

Police said over 230 people have been arrested. But the opposition claimed only two people have been arrested for attacking the anti-government protesters.

The opposition alleged that arson attacks on the ruling party members were caused by the government supporters attacking the peaceful protesters.

Sri Lanka is going through the worst economic crisis since independence in 1948.

A crippling shortage of foreign reserves has led to long queues for fuel, cooking gas and other essentials while power cuts and soaring food prices heaped misery on the people.

The economic crisis also triggered a political crisis in Sri Lanka and a demand for the resignation of the powerful Rajapaksas.

President Rajapaksa sacked his Cabinet and appointed a younger Cabinet as a response to the demand for his resignation. A continuous protest opposite his secretariat has now gone on for well over a month.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)