Marking the 72nd Independence Day of Sri Lanka, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has released 679 prisoners under general amnesty today (04).
The released inmates had been serving prison sentences over minor offenses such as theft, breach of trust and drunken driving, stated the Commissioner General of Prisons T. M. J. W. Tennakoon.
No one serving jail time on conviction for major offenses such as rape, robbery, grave sexual abuse and soliciting bribe have been granted amnesty.
Out of the 679 inmates who were granted the pardon, 8 inmates are female, the Commissioner added.
President Rajapaksa has granted pardon to these inmates in accordance with powers vested in the President by Article 34 of the Constitution and on the recommendation of Nimal Siripala de Silva, Minister of Justice, Human Rights and Legal Reforms.
