Elder brother Dhammika and younger brother Arjuna indicted on corruption charges

Today (23rd), the Colombo High Court handed over indictments to former Minister Arjuna Ranatunga and former Chairman of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, Dhammika Ranatunga, on corruption charges.

After the relevant indictments were handed over to the High Court, the judge ordered the release of the two defendants on two personal bails of five million rupees each. In addition, the court further ordered the case to be recalled on May 15th, deciding to hold the pre-trial conference related to this case on that day.

This lawsuit is based on an alleged large-scale financial irregularity that occurred in the years 2017 and 2018. During that period, three long-term tenders called by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation for the purchase of fuel required for the country for a period of six months were deliberately cancelled, and as an alternative, they proceeded to implement twenty-seven spot tenders at higher prices. Due to this illegal procedure, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation incurred a massive financial loss of nearly 800 million rupees, and based on these facts, including aiding and abetting that act, charges have been filed against the defendants.