Government Ministers hold meeting in Pottuvil – DM

Leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress and Minister of Justice Rauff Hakeem, Senior Minister A.H.M. Fowzie, Minister A. L. M Athaullah together with Senior Provincial Ministers and members of the councils held a meeting with residents of Pottuvil at the Grand Jumma Mosque in Pottuvil today.

The meeting was held after the funeral of M. Maujoom a 32 year old father of three and fomer candidate for the SLMC who was shot during protests yesterday. Speaking to Daily Mirror online just after concluding the meeting Minister Rauff Hakeem said that he had appraised the people present about the meeting he had with the President at the Katunayake Airport upon his return to the country.

"I told the people that the President was concerned about the situation here in Pottuvil and that he condemned the killing in no uncertain terms. We assured them that everyone responsible will be held accountable." Twenty youth have been arrested by the police for vandalism and damage of state property after yesterdays protests.

Hakeem went on to say, "We have spoken to all relevant authorities and they have assured us that they will ensure peace and calm in the area."  Commenting on the rumours of the 'Mystery Man'  Hakeem said, "We told the people that there were people with vested interests who are formulating these reprehensible rumours, with the idea of putting the government into difficulty." 

The leader of the SLMC which has a strong presence in the East reiterated that the government will take all neccessary steps to get to the bottom of the incident. "The police and armed forces are doing there best to restore public confidence and maintain law and order. The situation is calm in Pottuvil as of now and I will remain here until I am assured that the situation is under control. The government will do its utmost to bring normalcy back to the area," he added. (Fazal Mohomed)

Source : Daily mirror