Former cabinet minister and leader of the New Alliance, Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, has claimed that the charges against him are politically motivated. He stated that he would defend himself against allegations of misappropriating Rs. 6.1 million in 2014. Yapa and his wife were arrested around 9 p.m. at their residence in Kotte, and a statement was recorded until 3 a.m. The case has been pending for a long time, and the reason for arresting Yapa at night and continuing the statement recording until dawn remains unclear.
Yapa mentioned that he was given a mat and confined to a small room where he was asked to sleep, and his wife was treated similarly. “The way CID personnel came and surrounded my house with five vehicles shows their intention was to humiliate me in front of my neighbors,” said the former minister.
Both Yapa and his wife, who was also his private secretary, were arrested at a time when Yapa was in discussions with other politicians to form a new political alliance . As soon as Yapa was arrested, Patali Champika Ranawaka spoke out in defense of him.
Yapa said, “All this came about when I was in talks with like-minded people to plan a new political journey. Someone seems worried about it.”
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, speaking at a public rally, commented on the arrest, stating that he is not the one who decides who is to be arrested.
