LIVE : News 1st: Prime Time English News - 9 PM | (21-07-2026)

[00:00:19]A very good evening to you and welcome to tonight's edition of Prime Time News coming to you live from the news first studios here in Colbo. My name is Krishan Davis Sakaya >> and I'm Nav Shagura and here are your headlines for tonight.

[00:00:35]>> The headlines on news first.

[00:00:38]>> Five killed in Homegama factory fire.

[00:00:42]Court reissues warrant for Basil Raja Paka in Mura land case. Parliament rule changes. Copa cope findings to be referred to bribery commission and police. No confidence motion against justice minister Harsha Nanana handed to speaker.

[00:01:03]Deni cases surge past 77,000.

[00:01:07]Expert committee to review Kurena vaccine. Sprint star Yupun Abbeon announces retirement from athletics.

[00:01:20]And in your top story tonight, we have some tragic news where five people died in a fire that broke out this morning at a factory in the Katawan area in Homa.

[00:01:30]>> The police suspect that an electrical leak in a fan may have been the cause of the fire.

[00:01:39]At around 9:45 a.m. today, a fire broke out on the third floor of a three-story helmet manufacturing factory located in the Katawana industrial zone in Homa.

[00:02:15]The fire service department said that immediately after receiving reports of the emergency. More than 10 fire engines from Columbbo, Deala, Corte and Hora were dispatched to the scene. Personnel from the Sri Lanka Air Force, Sri Lanka army and police also joined the operation to help bring the blaze under control.

[00:02:45]>> More than 80 employees work at the factory. Workers said the company owns another building located across the road and that at the time the fire broke out, many employees had gone there to have their breakfast. Others were also inside the canteen located within the building where the fire occurred.

[00:03:48]The blaze was brought under control only after more than 2 hours of firefighting efforts.

[00:04:08]Fire incident command.

[00:04:31]Third enemy.

[00:04:55]The victims were identified as 19year-old Asahan Udara of Kolovinga, 24year-old Sachin Dilshan of Kuwava Atkalamana, 26year-old Vadar Ranch Damianti of Mascalia, 52year-old Mario Edward of Simalvata Horinitia and Dilipad Shanka of Kolovinga.

[00:05:17]Police suspect that an electrical leakage from a ceiling fan may have caused the fire. Acting home magistrate Roshan Kuruparachi visited the scene this afternoon. Following the inspection, arrangements were made to move the bodies to the home base hospital.

[00:05:51]Former Minister Basil Raja Paka has once again been ordered to be arrested and produced before court after Mata Chief Magistrate's court issued a warrant against him for failing to appear in an ongoing case. Madra Chief Magistrate Chhaturanga Iranga Desanayaka issued the fresh warrant when the case concerning the purchase of a 1 and a half acre property located at Brownsill on road in Mura was taken up today. The case filed by the police financial crimes investigation division relates to allegations surrounding the acquisition of the said land.

[00:06:28]A warrant had previously been issued against Raja Paka on the 22nd of May after he failed to appear before court on that occasion as well. Considering submissions made before court that Raja Paka had continued to evade court appearances, the chief magistrate ordered that a fresh warrant be issued for his arrest. The case has been filed against a former minister Basil Raja Paka Aayuma Galapati who is the sister of his wife her husband Tisagalapati and Mudita Jaikuri in connection with allegations that a property in the Brownsill area of Madra had been purchased using funds allegedly obtained through unlawful means. When the case was called Raja Paka who is the third accused and Ayama Galapati the fourth accused were absent from open court.

[00:07:14]However, their bail shies were present before the magistrate. As the shies were unable to produce the accused before court, the magistrate directed them to show cause as to why the bail amounts should not be forfeited to the state.

[00:07:28]The shorties subsequently requested a date to submit a written submissions regarding the matter. The magistrate ordered that the case be recalled on the 18th of August for the filing of written submissions and further proceedings. A foreign travel ban imposed on Basil Raja Paka remains in effect as the case continues before the Madra magistrate's court.

[00:07:49]A son of former state minister Shanta Bandara has been arrested by the Kalpiti police.

[00:07:57]>> The arrest was made in connection with the alleged robbery of 20 million rupees belonging to a Chinese national on the 13th of July. Police stated that four suspects linked to the incident have already been arrested and remanded in custody. Police spokesperson, Assistant Superintendent of Police Fuler, further stated that a grandson of a well-known businessman is also among those connected to the case. The son of former state minister Shantaa Bandara who was taken into custody is due to be produced before court.

[00:08:28]Starting today, reports from the parliamentary committee on public enterprises and the committee on public accounts can be submitted as formal complaints to the criminal investigation department or the bribery commission.

[00:08:41]This was made possible following the amendments made today to the parliamentary standing orders.

[00:08:49]COPE and COPA committees are tasked with scrutinizing the financial discipline and accountability of state-owned enterprises and statutory bodies.

[00:08:58]Although heads of institutions and public officials have regularly been summoned before these committees for questioning, their findings have often been confined to reports and recommendations with limited follow-up action. However, amendments to parliament standing orders adopted today will now allow reports of these committees to be directly referred to law enforcement agencies as formal complaints. COP chairman Dr. Nishant Samaria said information relating to eight institutions has already been prepared for submission to the commission to investigate allegations of bribery or corruption.

[00:09:33]An amendment has now been introduced to standing orders 119 and 120. If a committee concludes that acts of bribery or corruption have taken place once the report has been tabled in parliament and upon a decision being made by parliament, those matters may be directly referred by the committee to either the commission to investigate allegations of bribery or corruption or to the inspector general of police for appropriate action. We now have that authority. Accordingly, both the COPE and COPA committees can from this point onwards submit the observations and findings made during their proceedings as complaints to the CI or the bribery commission so that solutions can be found to the issues identified. In relation to eight institutions that were previously investigated, we are preparing to submit 23 complaints to the primary commission within this week. In addition, there are several other matters involving serious irregularities that we intend to refer to the C.

[00:10:33]During the debate, opposition leader Sajjit Premadasa expressed the following views.

[00:10:43]This government has failed to provide systematic solutions to the problems faced by the people. Even today, the farming community is in severe distress.

[00:10:51]I would like to ask what happened to the dramatic promises made when they were in the opposition. The minister of agriculture is unable to come before parliament and make a clear statement regarding a guaranteed price for patty.

[00:11:03]What happened to the promises made to plantation communities? The government pledged to protect estate workers. Yet people are now being chased away from estates. The government has also failed to provide effective answers to the deni crisis. The deni eradication program must be implemented more efficiently.

[00:11:27]We are lawmakers. The enforcement of the law and the administration of punishment must take place through the courts and the police. Historically, COPE and COP have functioned to conduct a postm.

[00:11:38]However, after coming to power, you are now trying to create a structural change that appears to bring the functions of the police and the judiciary into parliament itself. Is this the change you promised?

[00:11:52]We are not attempting to perform the duties of the police. If that were the case, we would be asking for police powers. But these committees cannot merely become talking shops where discussions are held, reports are prepared, and then left to gather dust.

[00:12:06]This is not an attempt to replace the police or conduct investigations ourselves. These matters can be referred to the attorney general. If the attorney general is of the opinion that this is a bribery offense and that it must be referred to the bribery commission that can be done. Similarly, both of these institutions can advise the CI to investigate certain matters and gather additional information where necessary.

[00:12:35]In another headline making story tonight, a no confidence motion against justice minister attorney at law harsh nayakara signed by opposition leader Sajit Premadasa and several opposition MPs has been formally handed over to speaker Dr. Jagat Vikramaratna. A total of 37 members of parliament have signed the motion.

[00:12:59]A significant number of MPs from the Sam Janabalia which holds 40 seats and constitutes the largest block in the opposition have not signed the proposal.

[00:13:09]Among these JB parliamentarians whose signatures were absent from the motion is Kuragla district MP Narin Bandara Jay Maha. Ratnapura district MP Hawa Vitanagi was also not among the signaries. Of the 66 opposition seats in parliament the remaining 26 are held by Ilanga Tamil Arsuki the new democratic front. the Sri Lanka Pudjanna Pereuna and several other parties and groups.

[00:13:32]While the motion has received support from members of the Sri Lanka poduna, the signature of MP Namal Rajar Paka was notably absent from the document. Among the signaries from the new democratic front were MPs Ravi Karuna Nayaka, Chamra Sat and Rohit Abbeuna.

[00:13:49]However, MP Faizer Mustafa did not sign the motion. Meanwhile, ITC MP Shanakin Rasamikum stated that the party's eight MPs would not support the no confidence motion. It is also noteworthy that the Tamil progressive alliance led by Mano Ganes has not backed the proposal. The no confidence motion has been brought against the justice minister over allegations that he failed to properly discharge his responsibilities following the violent incidents that occurred at the Nigama prison on the 5th and 6th July during which a number of prison officers and inmates lost their lives while others sustained serious injuries.

[00:14:24]>> The bar association of Sri Lanka convened a media briefing in Colbo today.

[00:14:31]I must say this also there are we have heard this term 1 point I number yours have spoken about this 1.1 million cases which are pending in any court system anywhere in the world there will be at a given point a number of cases that abstract figure of the number of cases does not show anything let me explain now for example in in in a few days ago Chief Justice Surya Kant was in Sri Lanka last year had mentioned uh that in India there are I think 54 or 55 million pending cases now there will be a number of pending cases always there can't be a system where there are no cases there will be cases there are reports uh ADB reports over the years in the bar has come up with reports as to how this system can be uh addressed the the extension of retirement age was not on the forefront of any of those reports so this is a new thing which is coming to us.

[00:15:44]Happy.

[00:16:25]believe I think you haven't properly understood what I said. What I said was that no such discussion has taken place at this time. This has been brought forward suddenly. As the president of the bar association, I cannot suddenly because we are trying to amend the constitution.

[00:17:02]This is not an act or some other regular. This isn't a circular. This is the constitution. Furthermore, if we want to increase the efficiency of our legal system and conclude our cases quickly, then we must look at what needs to be done to achieve that task.

[00:17:28]We could say that any clause in the constitution can be changed using a 2/3 majority. But if the government starts acting that way, it leads to a very dangerous situation. Besides, there is generally a tradition in our country that when making such a major change, it is usually promised to the people at the time of an election saying we are going to do this now. No such thing has taken place here either.

[00:18:10]corruption must absolutely be eradicated from this country, right? You said so yourself. In fact, a primary reason the government came into power is to eradicate corruption. There is a question as to whether the retirement age of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal judges must be increased to eradicate that corruption from the country. Why then are the four vacancies in the court of appeal and the four vacancies in the Supreme Court not being filled?

[00:18:57]Are you asking me this to make me commit contempt of court and get me sent somewhere? Recently the vice president of the bar association of India came and gave a speech. He spoke about the smell test. He meant that sometimes it does not smell right.

[00:19:11]>> Smell test.

[00:19:13]It does not smell right.

[00:19:15]>> Even when eating food, sometimes even though I am the president of the bow association, my food spoils every day.

[00:19:21]The food brought from home and by the time it's eaten, it's spoiled, right? So when eating, we can sense a little bit that it is nearing expiration. At that moment, I can't just come to a laboratory and test the food scientifically. I know the food is about to spoil. If I eat it, I will have a problem by evening. So regarding this, I think it should be looked at from that same perspective.

[00:19:54]for you are making an accusation that the bar association is someone's porn. I completely reject that. I could also ask you whether your channel is a pawn of the government, but I won't ask that. I won't ask. I won't ask. So, may I finish? Usually, when we stand for a certain policy, the opposition, the government or those inside the government might align with it. So, if we go by your logic and your argument, if the opposition says something, we should immediately run away from it saying, "No, no, the opposition is saying it too. So, we cannot let the opposition support us. Please withdraw that statement about being a porn because it is completely unethical. We are nobody's porn.

[00:21:21]statement.

[00:21:27]Meanwhile, cabinet spokesperson Minister Dr. Nalind Jayatisa stated that discussions can also be held with the bar association after deciding on the steps to be taken regarding the retirement age of judges.

[00:22:13]In more local news and in another headline making story this evening, a special expert committee has been appointed to deter determine whether the Japanese manufactured qinga dingi vaccine is suitable for use in Sri Lanka. The national medicines regulatory authority or NMR announced as the country continues to face a significant surge in deni infections.

[00:22:36]>> This development comes as the number of deni cases reported in Sri Lanka this year has exceeded 77,000.

[00:22:45]Health authorities said that 21,650 deni cases have been reported during the past 20 days alone, highlighting the rapid spread of the disease across the country. A total of 984 new cases were recorded yesterday, while patient numbers have shown a notable increase over the past several months. The number of deni related deaths reported so far this year has risen to 56. The National Deni Control Unit said that 162 MO divisions across the island continue to be classified as high-risk deni zones.

[00:23:18]At the provincial level, the western province remains the worst affected region accounting for 52.67% of all deni cases reported nationwide.

[00:23:27]Meanwhile, in MRA chairman and consultant physician Dr. Ananduikum said an application has been submitted for the registration of the Qinga vaccine in Sri Lanka. An eight member panel of experts has now been appointed to evaluate the scientific, clinical and regulatory information submitted as part of the application process. Dr. Vijay Vikramman noted that the potential benefits of introducing the codenga vaccine include reducing the risk of deni infection, lowering the likelihood of severe deni complications and decreasing the need for hospitalization.

[00:24:01]However, medical experts have cautioned that the level of protection provided by the vaccine can vary depending on several factors, including an individual's previous deni infection history, age, and whether they live in an area where deni is prevalent. He further stressed that mosquito density remains high in several parts of the country and emphasized that maintaining clean surroundings at home, workplaces, and public institutions will continue to be crucial in the coming weeks.

[00:24:33]The stop deni now national deni eradication program was implemented today for the 11th consecutive day within the western province centering around the calamo kalutra and kaha districts. This program is organized by the maharaja media network led by news first in collaboration with the ministry of health and mass media. The team that to the kalo district engaged in public awareness programs regarding dingi prevention in the kahhatura area. Today the team in the Gampa district visited the Dump and Datan areas. Today another team from the stop deni national eradication program to the Vadua and Pinwata areas in Panadura.

[00:25:15]The meeting between the visiting European Union representatives and the representatives of Tamil political parties took place in Japna.

[00:25:27]Representatives of Tamil political parties met with European Union representatives including ambassadors of the European Union to Sri Lanka in the Maldives Carmon Morino, Deputy Head of the EU delegation to Sri Lanka Khaliha Ekaza and ambassador of France to Sri Lanka Remy Lambert. Representatives from the Ilang Tamil Arusuki or ITC Elum People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF the Tamil People's National Alliance or TPNA and the Tamil Elum Liberation Organization or TE participated in this meeting.

[00:26:02]>> Our Daspora relatives investments can be brought here by making arrangements for that and further developing the agriculture and fishery sectors. It will be helpful to drive their economic growth. support must be provided for that as well. Tomorrow they are scheduled to visit the chimney excavation site. Therefore, by conducting a separate study regarding that, determining the time frame and finding out during which period the remains were buried in this mass grave, it will be possible to identify the military personnel and administrators who were in power during those specific periods.

[00:26:40]Excavation activities at the chimney mass grave site in Japna entered its 39th day of the third phase today.

[00:26:50]The excavations were carried out in the presence of Japna magistrate esenumar.

[00:26:55]30 new sets of human remains were identified today. The skeletal remains of three children were also unearthed today. Today there are 30 new skeletal remains were identified, cleaned up and numbered. The total reach to 467 and there were like four human remains which were like removed and then um handed over to the custody of court. So the total one removed from the soil totally arises as like 444 as of today.

[00:27:32]During the media briefing held today to announce cabinet decisions, questions were raised regarding the chimman mass grave site.

[00:27:49]for for the inaugural National Sustainable Development Law Symposium was held in Colbo. The event focused on the integration of a sustainability lens in the legal profession.

[00:28:55]The inaugural National Sustainable Development Law Symposium included discussions diving deep into the importance of integrating a sustainability lens in legal careers touching upon a vast area of topics from global trade, finance, investment and policy formulation. The keynote address of the event was delivered by Dilip Nawas, justice of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka.

[00:29:20]>> You take a country such as Singapore, they have lack of space. There are more buildings than there is land.

[00:29:31]So there's more carbon emissions there.

[00:29:35]But if you take Sri Lanka, we have a lot of space.

[00:29:40]We also emit um carbon but it's not so much as you find it in Singapore under article six of the Paris agreement.

[00:29:56]Singapore can Sri Lanka can enter into a bilateral agreement with Singapore and they can come to our country and finance some of our projects such as solar panels.

[00:30:16]They help us to reduce our own carbon dioxide emissions here.

[00:30:23]They can help us to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions and earn credits.

[00:30:33]This is possible under article six. It helps Sri Lanka because this financing will help us to sustain us. It will help us to find employment.

[00:30:49]Bhutan has now entered into such a bilateral contract uh with these countries. So we must explore that.

[00:30:59]We must explore this avenue. I don't see it happening in Sri Lanka.

[00:31:07]It's like two neighbors.

[00:31:10]One neighbor has more space so that he can grow a garden. the other uh neighbor doesn't have uh right but the the next neighbor comes and gets the first neighbor who has a lot of space. This is the embodiment of article six of the Paris agreement. We are a party to the Paris agreement. Philip Sans says when you sign international agreements it is virtually signing up to customary international law. The symposium included presentations, panel discussions and virtual presentations focused on bringing out opportunities for the legal profession as Sri Lanka positions itself to seize opportunities from sustainability transition, building a domestic legal setup on adaptation and resilience.

[00:32:01]Today I'm at the National Sustainable Development Law Symposium which is undertaking in Colbo. Today, experts from the legal profession are making conversations about the importance of having sustainable development and concepts related to sustainable development, having those concepts integrated into the legal profession.

[00:32:21]And throughout the day today, experts are making conversations and having panel discussions and virtual sessions like right behind me undertaken throughout the day today. And reporting to you for the news team, I'm Vra Viron.

[00:32:37]A media briefing and discussion on the inaugural Jeffrey Baba Munamal Award took place today in Ben.

[00:32:46]>> The media briefing and discussion on the inaugural Jeffrey Baba Munamal award unfolded today in Ben bringing together key industry stakeholders to discuss the award's core design principles, national impact and application guidelines for projects across Sri Lanka. shaping a blueprint for development that integrates human and natural systems.

[00:33:06]Conceptualized by the Jeffrey Baba Trust, this design-led initiative moves beyond standard sustainability measures to recognize projects that actively restore ecosystems and foster true coexistence between humans and natural landscapes.

[00:33:22]>> The idea of destroying something by design showed us that we we destroyed it by design. You could similarly identify design that does not destroy but accident and that was the main as we begin to design and then for us to recognize those designs as as as we go on. The Jeffrey Baba trust set up by by Baba initially to look after his garden just sticking in and some of these other issues also has gone on to uh become a leading cultural organization that we where we started with um recognizing one of the things that we started doing was to recognize architecture for the world news.

[00:34:14]>> In international news, we start off in neighboring India where the cockroach Jantaa party said today that it will continue its anti-government protests but will not march again. This decision was taken by them due to the police brutality that hurt several supporters on its march to the parliament on Monday.

[00:34:32]>> Now, San Fernerinando is ready to bring us all the details on this.

[00:34:36]>> Thank you Nav Shan Krishan. Yes, let's take a look at this story now in detail.

[00:34:40]A day after high drama in India's national capital, the centrical platform cockroach Jantaa party had said its protest at Delhi's Jantaa Manta will continue. This morning saw protesters reclaiming the site after police removed the stage and tents from Jantaa Manta following a day of protests and confrontations between protesters and police yesterday. Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court today allowed activist Sonam Wangshuk who was picked up from the cockroach Jantaa protest site at Delhi's Jantaa Manta last week to be shifted from the governmentrun Sakraun hospital to Mandata Hospital, a private facility of his choice while ensuring continuity of his treatment. Let's take a look.

[00:35:33]Protesters started streaming into Jantaa Mantar early this morning after CJP's call for the protest to continue. Heavy deployment of police and RAF personnel remained at the site. Yesterday's march to parliament saw unprecedented scenes in the national capital as thousands of protesting students hit the roads leading to chaos, confrontation, and police action. More than 100 policemen and over 60 protesters were injured after police used tear gas shells to disperse crowds that at one point came within meters of parliament.

[00:36:04]Demonstrators proceeded with the march demanding the resignation of the education minister Dhandra Pradhan over repeated leaks of the neat medical entrance examination. They say these leaks have caused immense stress for students who have had to reprepare and receat for the rigorous examinations.

[00:36:21]Protesters are also calling for broader reforms to India's educational system.

[00:36:25]The march was fueled by outrage over the weekend when the Indian activist and educationist Soom Wanguk on hunger strike for 21 days in Delhi was forcibly removed by Delhi police and hospitalized. Current reports say that the Delhi High Court has allowed Sonum Wanchuk to be shifted to his hospital of choice.

[00:36:44]In more news overseas, newly appointed British Prime Minister Andy Burham says he will remove value added tax from electricity bills in October, saving a typical household about £45 a year. He made these remarks during his first meeting with the new cabinet which he appointed late last night after taking office following the resignation of Sir Kir Stmer.

[00:37:10]Andy Bernham's first full day as prime minister of the United Kingdom began today when the newly formed government dropped its first major policy aimed at cutting VAT from domestic electricity bills until the end of the financial year. Accordingly, the government will cut VAT from domestic energy bills for 6 months from October resulting in an average yearly saving of £45.

[00:37:34]Issuing a statement, the UK government said millions of households across the UK will benefit from immediate action to help with their electricity bills this winter. The prime minister has announced as one of his first decisions in office.

[00:37:47]The statement added quote unquote government is tackling rising bills with the tax cut to remove vet from domestic electricity bills from 1st of October in time to impact the next off price cap.

[00:37:59]This immediate action applies and is funded for this financial year.

[00:38:03]According to the statement, the cost of this immediate action for this financial year taken now before the next price cap is being funded from the cancellation of the 1.8 billion pound digital ID program. The statement issued by the British government further noted that this vet cut from 5 to 0% is estimated to reduce CPI inflation by around 0.10 percentage points and RPI by around 0.14 percentage points. While the action is estimated to cost around850 million pounds in 2026 27 on the basis of estimated electricity prices.

[00:38:49]In sports news, Commonwealth medalist and sprinter Yupon Nabon announced today that he's retiring from competitive sports.

[00:38:58]>> Viron has more on this. Yes, thank you Krishan and Nikka. Now in your sports news today, Commonwealth medalist and sprinter Yubun who brought much glory to Sri Lanka on the international stage announced today that he is retiring from competitive sports. He made this announcement by sharing a post on his official Facebook account.

[00:39:23]An alumnus of Pandala National School and Joseph College when Napur Yunabun won remarkable international level achievements in short distance running events. He is the holder of the South Asian records for the 100 meter and 200 meter events as well as the Asian record holder for the men's 150 m event. He set the South Asian and Sri Lankan records for the 100 meter event by clocking a time of 9.96 seconds. He is the only Sri Lankan to compete in the 100 meter event in under 10 seconds. Yupun's collection of medals from international competitions also includes a bronze medal in the 100 meter event at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.

[00:40:25]We see You see, Sri Lanka marked International Chess Day 2026 with a series of events. promoting inclusivity and solidarity featuring players with visual impairments alongside national champions and chess enthusiasts. Here's the story.

[00:41:18]The Chess Federation of Sri Lanka celebrated International Chess Day 2026 with a special simultaneous chess exhibition highlighting the message that chess is a game for everyone. The event featured several blind and low vision chess players including national blind chess champion 2018 Tuan Rushi who competed against reigning national women's champion Dhamadi Sanadullah.

[00:41:40]>> Today is a very special day because we are celebrating inclusivity and community here. This event is for people who are visually handicapped, people with other kinds of disabilities who play chess. And the message that we want to give everyone is that chess is for everyone for all of you and uh we don't want to leave anyone behind. We want everyone to play chess and enjoy this beautiful game. The exhibition attracted dozens of young chess players, veteran enthusiasts, and members of the public with four-time national champion and winner of 10 consecutive national senior titles, TTR Peris, veteran player MK Namika, and UK based player Vivash Summer Saron who holds an ELO rating above 2,000 also taking part.

[00:42:28]>> And that's a wrap of your prime time news for tonight. Thank you for watching.

[00:42:32]>> Take care. Good night and God bless you.

[00:42:35]Heat. Heat.