Sri lanka freed an Opposition Muslim political leader from jail without charge after detaining him earlier in the week under a tough anti-terrorism law, his lawyer said on Saturday.
Azath Sally (49), the former deputy mayor of Colombo, was arrested on Sunday and detained in police custody in what the minority Muslim community described as the latest attack on them in the Buddhist-dominated island nation.
Sally, leader of the Muslim National Unity Alliance, was released on Friday after authorities revoked a 90-day detention ordered by President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is also the minister of defence, his lawyer Shiraz Noordeen said.
“No charges have been pressed and he was released after negotiations with the defence ministry,” Noordeen said.
A vocal critic of Rajapaksa, Sally is now in hospital following a hunger strike he launched in protest over his arrest under the Prevention of Terrorism Act.
The United States, which moved a censure motion against Sri lanka at the March UN Human Rights Council sessions in Geneva, earlier asked Colombo to ensure the opposition leader had access to lawyers.
local media reports quoted unnamed officials as saying Sally was accused of inciting Muslims to take up arms against the state — a claim his lawyer denied.