Srilanka, May 13 -- Three hundred and eighty eight prisoners across the country have been granted release under a special Presidential pardon, in a symbolic gesture of compassion and renewal marking the Vesak festival. Among those released, 27 individuals from the Northern Province, specifically from the Jaffna and Vavuniya prisons were freed in recent days. The initiative, a tradition tied to Vesak celebrations, seeks to embody the Buddhist values of forgiveness and rehabilitation. According to prison authorities, the pardoned inmates had been serving short-term sentences for minor, non-violent offenses.

From Jaffna Prison, 20 inmates were released on Sunday in accordance with the presidential directive. Similarly, Vavuniya Prison rele...