The President took to Twitter to wish the Buddhists on the occasion of Vesak day.Department of Prisons Spokesman Thusara Upuldeniya told Xinhua news agency the President granted amnesty for the prisoners convicted of minor offences.
The spokesman said they were held in 29 prisons in the country.
“The President did it in keeping with the power vested in him under the Sri Lankan Constitution. Most of these people were in jail because of their inability to pay fines imposed on them by courts. The fines were waived off enabling them to get free,” Upuldeniya said.
The Sri Lankan President grants such relief to prisoners every year as a tradition on special occasions such as Vesak, the Independence Day and the National New Year.
