Body politic with a weak skeletal structure

Cover Story

Jan 25, 2020

Vishvanath

A political party system is the skeletal structure of the body politic and its health is a prerequisite for the wellbeing of democracy. It helps hold a polity in place, enables democratic governance and countervails fissiparous tendencies resulting from group dynamics and other such factors therein. Concerns have been expressed in some quarters about the weakening of the political parties in this country. The deterioration of political parties is fraught with the danger of predisposing a country to anarchy. Smaller political parties in this country ...Continued

The Phone-Gate And Media Feeding Frenzy

Cover Story

Jan 10, 2020

Vishvanath

This country is never short of issues that grab headlines. It was thought, in the run-up to the defeat of the LTTE on 19 May, 2009, that the media would be scraping the bottom of the barrel, in a bid to fill space and airtime, after the conclusion of the war, which had ensured a steady supply of news for nearly three decades. But issues have since cropped up at an amazing rate, so much so that the media find it difficult to keep pace ...Continued

India Erupts

Cover Story

Dec 27, 2019

Vishvanath

It looks as though the recently passed Citizenship Amendment Act had done to India what Hanuman did to Lanka, in Ramayana. It has set India on fire, so to speak. Mass protests have engulfed many parts of that country and already left 20 dead. Hundreds, if not thousands, have been arrested. The Modi government is determined to go ahead with the implementation of the new law come what may. Amidst protests, the Indian Cabinet has recently approved financial allocations for a nationwide census and a ...Continued

How alleged bid to kill Prez was revealed

Cover Story

Dec 13, 2019

Hemantha Perera and Vishvanath

A plot to harm President Gotabaya Rajapaksa or someone close to him has recently been bared, and a suspect arrested. The CID is conducting a high level investigation into the alleged plot and some more arrests are likely, according to the police. The police did not take foreign intelligence warnings of the Easter Sunday attacks seriously until disaster struck, snuffing out more than 250 lives, in churches and hotels. IGP Pujith Jayasundera and former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando are currently languishing in remand prison for ...Continued

A brief history of Prorogation

Cover Story

Dec 3, 2019

By Hawk’s Eye

History is full of instances of military victories being followed by the ascent of top generals or the gownsmen involved in war efforts to power. Some such military leaders took the easy path by staging military coups while some did so democratically. And there are also many instances of such generals leading their nations to prosperity, some even building empires. They surely did one thing – they changed the course of history. Incumbent president Gotabaya Rajapaksa is one of those who were instrumental in winning ...Continued

Politics is not Murali’s cup of tea

Cover Story

Nov 29, 2019

Spectator

Very few can hold a candle to Muttiah Muralitharan when it comes to his knowledge of world politics, of which he is a keen student. He seems to prefer Democrats in the US not because of the charismatic John F. Kennedy, the only Catholic to be US President. He seems to prefer Labour in the UK not because Jeremy Corbyn, who adores his bowling feats. He seems to prefer Congress in India not because of P. Chidambaram, who is well known to his wife’s family. ...Continued

When money talks

Cover Story

Nov 29, 2019

Hawk’s Eye

Those who contested the recently concluded presidential election have reportedly spent billions of rupees, according to polls monitors.  It is not possible to find out how much they actually spent because there is no legal requirement for them to reveal their sources of funding or election related expenses. The amounts spent at the presidential election are sure to pale into insignificance when the next parliamentary election takes place. Campaign managers and consultants of politicians are now getting ready for the next general election to be ...Continued

Running with Gota and hunting with Sajith

Cover Story

Nov 15, 2019

Vishvanath

“What matters in a race is not the start but the finish. The same is true of politics. A political leader is usually remembered for what he or she was at the time of retirement. What does the future hold for President Maithripala Sirisena? “Sirisena, a gifted vocalist, while he was President Rajapaksa’s Heath Minister, said that he was yearning to leave politics and sing virindu in his retirement, singing being his favourite pastime. Has the time come for him to look for a good rabana ? Has the ...Continued

Is the game worth the candle?

Cover Story

Nov 1, 2019

Vishvanath

The presidential race is hotting up with the major candidates going ahead full throttle. Two contestants, Gotabaya Rajapaka (SLPP) and Sajith Premadasa (NDF), are in the lead.  There are more than 30 also-rans in the contest. This is an election that the SLPP and the UNP are all out to win, given the very high stakes they have in it. The party that secures the presidency is most likely to win the general election to follow anytime soon. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told the media ...Continued

Coronation of a New Czar in Madush’s Empire

Cover Story

Oct 18, 2019

Hemantha Perera and Vishvanath

Piliyandala, a populous suburb of Colombo, was full of hustle and bustle on 09 May 2017. It was around 8.45 pm, but the township was still congested, as usual. Thirteen armed Police Narcotic Bureau (PNB) officers were waiting, in three vehicles, in the area, for a signal to swing into action, having laid a trap to catch an elusive drug lord. The PNB leader, Inspector Neomal Rangajeewa and two other officers were travelling in a private car from Colombo, so as not to arouse anyone’s ...Continued

Savagery At Madampitiya Graveyard: The Untold Story

Cover Story

Oct 4, 2019

Hemantha Perera and Vishvanath

It is popularly thought that the arrest of Sri Lanka’s ‘Napoleon of Crime’, Makandure Madush, and his confederates, last May, has helped contain the underworld. There has, in fact, been a decrease in the incidents of organised crime, during the last several months. But this let-up is deceptive, for criminal gangs, like some animals, opt for suspended animation, when the environment they operate in turns hostile. Hardcore criminals, caged in state pens continue to run their crime syndicates from their cells, with the help of ...Continued

Gang Rivalries get Red in Tooth and Claw: A Severed...

Cover Story

Sep 20, 2019

Hemantha Perera and Vishvanath

The media report, from time to time, underworld killings, but little known is the fact that most of them are interconnected and consequent to bloody turf wars. The Counterpoint, today, examines an incident where a gang left a severed head at Hulftsdorp. The victim was a member of Ranale Samaya’s gang. Today’s special report is based on information obtained from the police investigators who solved the crime. The spectacular attack on the Kalutara Prison bus and the elimination of Ranale Samaya and four of his ...Continued