Newspaper doomed as printer pulls out

A private company that handled the printing of the pro-left Sinhala language weekly “Lanka” has pulled out owing to pressure and intimidation from certain quarters, a spokesperson for the newspaper said.

The latest development comes barely 72 hours after the Gangodawila Magistrate Anura Kumara Herath revoked a seal order on the newspaper office saying the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) failed to produce further evidence against the publisher.

However the Editor of the newspaper Chandana Sirimalwatte continues to remain in custody and it was not clear when the police would produce him before a court, the spokesperson added.

Mr. Sirimalwatte was earlier questioned by police on two separate occasions during and after the Southern Provincial Council elections held in October last year for articles relating to mansions being built by top government officials.