Sri Lanka Finance Minister’s PRO quits

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Finance minister Mangala Samaraweera’s Public Relations Officer resigned on Tuesday after he was arrested during a controversial police Special Task Force (STF) raid over the weekend.

Sameera Manohara tendered his resignation and returned his official vehicle, finance ministry officials said.

Manohara was taken into custody by a team led by an STF Assistant superintendent allegedly on a tip off about narcotics.

In a statement, the finance ministry said Manohara was arrested on Saturday night while he was on his way to attend a party at Mount Lavinia. There were no drug-related charges against him.

Manohara was released on bail, but another person who was in the company of Manohara and others had been remanded on a charge of possessing narcotics.

Official sources said there were allegations that Manohara may have been a victim of a personnel vendetta. An STF officer removed from a special unit at the finance ministry is said to have instigated the arrest. (COLOMBO, Aug 8, 2017)