After revision plea, Yoshitha Rajapaksa granted bail

Legal team member terms bail 'permanent.'

Yoshitha Rajapaksa, son of former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa, shows hand cuffs to the media as he is taken away in a prison bus in connection with a case of alleged money-laundering from a magistrate court in Kaduwela, on the outskirts of Colombo on January 30, 2016. Jayantha Weerasinghe, a member of the legal team that is defending Mr. Yoshitha Rajapaksa and four others, told 'The Hindu' that the bail had been granted on the basis of a revision application. No time limit had been fixed for the bail, which, he termed “permanent.”

Yoshitha Rajapaksa, a lieutenant in the Sri Lanka Navy and the second son of the former President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, and four others were granted bail by the Colombo High Court on Monday morning.

On January 30, they were arrested by the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) in connection with a case of alleged money-laundering concerning the Carlton Sports Network (CSN). On March 10, the Kaduwela Magistrate extended their remand till March 24. Last month, the Navy suspended Mr. Yoshitha Rajapaksa from service.

Bail ‘permanent’

Jayantha Weerasinghe, a member of the legal team that is defending Mr. Yoshitha Rajapaksa and four others, told The Hindu that the bail had been granted on the basis of a revision application. No time limit had been fixed for the bail, which, he called, “permanent.” The bail order would now be presented to the Magistrate for securing the release of the five persons.