Sri Lanka, June 17 -- Colombo Fort Magistrate Pasan Amarasena has ordered the CID's Illegal Assets Unit to arrest former Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa and produce him in court over allegations involving misuse of funds from the Tourism Promotion Bureau.

The case concerns claims that Rs. 7.8 million allocated in 2014 for tourism promotion was instead used to distribute 12,000 T-shirts during the Uva Provincial Council election, causing a loss to the government.

During the hearing, the court also granted bail to former Tourism Promotion Bureau Managing Director Rumi Jaufer and imposed a foreign travel ban. The CID confirmed that charges have been filed under the Public Property Act, while further instructions from the Atto...