Bail sought for Namal to place the pinnacle of the Esala Perahera - remanded until the 29th

Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama ordered that Member of Parliament Namal Rajapaksa, who has been arrested in connection with the accusation of receiving a bribe of 100 million rupees during the purchase of Airbus aircraft for SriLankan Airlines, be further remanded until the 29th.

The court also decided that the order related to the bail application submitted on behalf of the suspect MP would be announced on the same day.

The Magistrate ordered the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption to file the written submissions of the defense on the 22nd and the written submissions of the prosecution on the 25th, regarding this bail application. This decision was given by the court after considering the lengthy submissions made by Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara, who appeared for the Bribery Commission, and President's Counsel Shavindra Fernando, who appeared for the suspect.

When the case was called, Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara stated before the court that in addition to this charge, investigations are also being conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and therefore the Bribery Commission and the Criminal Investigation Department are conducting joint investigations. It was revealed that the first suspect in this investigation, which dates back to 2012, Mr. Kapila Chandrasena, has now passed away, and the second suspect, Priyanka Neomali Wijenaike, has fled to Australia, and the third suspect, Shamindra Rajapaksa, has fled to America. The Deputy Solicitor General also stated that efforts are underway to obtain Red Notices through Interpol for their arrest, and the relevant investigation files have been forwarded to the Attorney General's Department to prepare for filing indictments.

Detailing the progress of the investigations, he further stated that statements were recorded from former Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa, Susantha Chaminda Ratnayake, and Dimuthu Sanjaya regarding the holding of a SriLankan Airlines Board of Directors meeting at the Speaker's official residence and Shamindra Rajapaksa's departure abroad. The prosecution also emphasized that since the Director General of the Bribery Commission has submitted a certificate under Section 149 of the Anti-Corruption Act, bail can only be granted to the suspect on exceptional grounds, and the court has previously determined that the grounds presented were not exceptional.

President's Counsel Shavindra Fernando, appearing for the suspect Namal Rajapaksa, submitted that his client's name is not mentioned in the international investigation report on the Airbus transaction, and that he was remanded based on false statements given by a person named Nimal Perera. He also requested bail, considering that the MP lost an official invitation from the Indian government for a visit due to his remand, and also an invitation to attend the enshrinement of the pinnacle of a temple at 7:42 PM during the annual Esala Perahera in Hingurakgoda on September 26th.

Responding to this, Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara, quoting from the Adhamma Sutta regarding unrighteous kings and monks, stated that the credibility of a witness cannot be considered an exceptional circumstance at this stage, but rather during a trial. He further stated that neither the Indian tour nor participation in a religious ceremony are sufficiently exceptional reasons to grant bail, and informed the court that no exceptional circumstances have been presented to grant bail to the suspect, as information has been revealed during investigations into the "Weligama Bay" incident that Nimal Perera's account received suspicious funds exceeding 175 million rupees.