Former State Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pilleyan has left the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), a short while ago, after providing a statement for around 5 hours.

Pilleyan arrived at the CID this morning (20) to provide a statement pertaining to an investigation regarding the controversial documentary aired by British television network ‘Channel 4’ on the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks in Sri Lanka.

On November 12, the former Chief Minister of the Eastern Province had been summoned to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) in order to record a statement related to the allegations in the documentary aired by British television network ‘Channel 4’ on the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks in Sri Lanka.

However, Pilleyan did not arrive at the CID on the scheduled date instead requested a new date to provide his statement through his attorneys.

He was then informed to appear at the CID today and Pilleyan had arrived at the CID at around 9.30 a.m. today. He had left after around 5 hours after recording his statement, Ada Derana reporter said.

On 06 September 2023, Channel 4 aired a controversial documentary containing startling accusations relating to the bombings on Easter Sunday (April 21) in 2019 which targeted several Catholic churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka. The carnage claimed the lives of more than 260 people and left hundreds of others wounded.

Channel 4’s new ‘Dispatches’ investigation titled ‘Sri Lanka’s Easter Bombings’ is a nearly 50-minute-long videos with serious, yet straightforward allegations about the attacks. It was based on the testimonies of high-placed whistleblowers who alleged that senior governmental officials were complicit in this heinous act.

The main whistleblower Hanzeer Azad Maulana was a spokesman for LTTE’s breakaway group Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pullikal (TMVP) led by former MP Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillayan.

Speaking at a press conference held on November 11, Police Media Spokesman DIG Nihal Thalduwa said that the CID has launched a probe into the relevant incident as per a complaint lodged by an organization with the Ministry of Public Security against the statement made by Azad Maulana to Channel 4 on the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks.

He said that, an investigation was launched by the CID into the controversial statements made by several individuals regarding the Easter attacks.