Two members of the staff and a vehicle of the US-based relief organisation CARE International were involved in the December 2006, assassination attempt on Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the Colombo Magistrate’s Court was told on Friday.
Investigations revealed that the bomb fixed in a three-wheeler parked at the Pittala Junction in Kollupitiya to kill the Defence Secretary, was brought to Colombo, in a vehicle belonging to CARE International, the police told the court.
Dharmalingam Dharmadaran and Rasaiah Kannan, both employees of CARE, had transported the bomb and its accessories in a van belonging to the relief organisation from Kilinochchi. Sivalingam Arunan buried the bomb in a house in Colombo and later transported it to Modera near the Colombo harbour and fixed it inside a three-wheeler belonging to the suicide cadre, Lateef Mohamed Faris.
Ponnasamy Karthigesu had facilitated the purchase of the three-wheeler. CARE employees Dharmadaran and Kannan, are now in custody. The van had also been seized.
Since this incident, the Sri Lankan government has asked all NGOs to work under the Competent Authority of Maj Gen Chandrasiri, the relevant ministries and the Security Forces.
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