General Sarath Fonseka, 59, former Army chief of Sri Lanka and the main contestant against President Mahinda Rajapaksa in the recent presidential election, has been arrested by the military on charges of fraud connected to his term in the armed services, which ended in November 2009.

Mahinda Rajapaksa, President of Sri Lanka, has won a second term in office, after defeating his nearest rival, General Sarath Fonseka, former chief of the army and the joint Opposition candidate.

There was 70% voter turnout when polling for the presidential election in Sri Lanka ended on January 26, 2010, amidst heavy security to thwart any possible violence.

A British medic of Asian origin has alleged that military guards sexually abused Tamil women in refugee camps in Sri Lanka. Besides, many people suspected of links to the defeated Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have been “removed” and not seen since.

Sarath Fonseka, 58, who recently retired as Sri Lanka’s Chief of Defence Staff, has been selected by the United National Party (UNP), the main Opposition party in Sri Lanka, as its candidate for the presidential election to be held on January 26, 2010.