Sri Lankan Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapaksa stated that lesbianism “equals sadism” and advocated the rape of lesbians by convicted sexual offenders to “cure” them, reports Economy Next.

Referring to a landmark May 2000 ruling, when Mr Rajapaksa was head of the Press Council of Sri Lanka, the current justice minister stated that homophobic hate mail that had been published in The Island had been done so in “good faith”.

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena called on all people on the island to come together and “build a society in this Buddhist country,” during a religious ceremony in Matara last week.

The southern president went on to call on young Bhikkhus in particular to “act in a manner which protects the dignity and recognition of the noble Bhikkhu society”. Mr Sirisena went on to heap praise on senior Buddhist monk Kirama Wimalajothi Nayaka who had been “elevated to the position of Chief Sanganayake of South Sri Lanka”.

Sri Lanka’s Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapaksa called on Buddhist monks to lead a campaign against the current Sirisena unit government for political change, reports island.lk.

Speaking at a public meeting in Anuradhapura, the Justice Minister criticised Prime Minister Ranil WIckremesinghe and President Maithripala Sirisena, stating,

The Sri Lankan government has pledged to build 50,000 brick houses in the North-East, following months of protest against the initial proprosal of building 65,000 pre-fabricated houses. 

The Secretary to the Ministry of National Integration and Reconciliation, V Sivagnanasothy told the Sunday Times, “The prospective owners will decide the kind of housing they prefer. Tenders will be called for construction work that would accommodate local participation."

The Bhutanese government has issued a circular to medical students in Sri Lanka to return home should the ongoing strikes continue beyond October this year.

The circular called for Bhutanese students from the Universities of Colombo, Kelaniya and Peradeniya should return home in October and “wait in Bhutan until the situation in Sri Lanka improves or some alternative arrangement is made.”The statement further added that payments to the universities would be suspended until classes resume.

Sri Lanka's National Police Commission said it did not have the legal power to investigate the Inspector General of the Police over a video showing him assaulting two junior members of staff. 

"The NPC can investigate and take action only on the police service but not the IGP," the Commission's secretary Ariyadasa Cooray told the Sunday Leader, adding that it did not have the legal power to do so. 

The video shows IGP Pujith Jayasundara manhandling and making threatening gestures to the two junior officers outside a lift at the police headquarters. 

Over 36,000 Sri Lanka Army deserters are still at large said Military Spokesperson Brigadier Roshan Seneviratne.

Speaking to the media, following an island wide raid that saw 777 deserters arrested on Friday, the army spokesperson added 4377 army deserters had been taken into custody to date.

Sri Lanka’s army has heightened effort to locate and detain members of the tri-forces who are considered Absent Without Leave.

The search operation come after the military conducted a year long general amnesty which saw 8800 military deserters present themselves for a legal discharge from the military.  

Eight foreign companies, including from India and Singapore have expressed interest in oil and gas exploration in the Mannar basin, the former Director General of the Petroleum Resource Development Secretariat, Saliya Wickramasuriya said. 

If the bids were successful "Sri Lanka stands to benefit", Mr Wickramasuriya was quoted by the Sunday Leader as saying. 

Cairn India stopped natural gas exploration in Mannar in 2015 after the petroleum price dropped internationally. 

Three former LTTE cadres currently being held in remand at Anuradhapura prison launched a hunger strike on Sunday in protest at the length of time it has taken for their cases to be hear at court. 

“The three detainees had refused to take breakfast and urge the authorities expedite their court cases filed in the Vavuniya Court to be taken for hearing,” a prison official was quoted by the Daily Mirror as saying. 

Four Indian Army officers including the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Southern Command visited Jaffna on Saturday to remember IPKF soldiers killed by the LTTE.