Midweek Review

A question of integrity:Nepotism in politics and favouritism

Published

12 months ago

2025/07/16

Things are getting ‘curiouser and curiouser’

The National People’s Power (NPP) government is under intense public scrutiny. The recent appointment of retired Commodore M.B.N.A. Premarathne as new Commissioner General of Exercise drew heavy public condemnation as the media revealed his wife, senior Professor Wasantha Subasinghe, who had been on the NPP National List at the last parliamentary election held in November 2024, recently received appointment as Vice Chancellor of the Gampaha Wickramarachchi University of Indigenous Medicine. Social media erupted with adverse comments on the appointments.

Premarathne succeeded U.L. Udaya Kumara Perera, a Special Grade Officer of the Inland Revenue Service, who retired on 10 July, 2025, having reached the mandatory retirement age of 60. The Excise Department had been placed under a retired military officer.

The public questioned the appointments against the backdrop of severe NPP criticism over the years of nepotism in public sector appointments. She was one of the 13 nominees not lucky enough to get a National List slot. The Parliament consists of 29 nominated and 196 elected members.

The following were the NPP National List nominees: Bimal Niroshan Rathnayake , Dr. Anura Karunathilake, Prof. Upali Pannilage, Eranga Udesh Weerarathna, Aruna Jayasekara, Dr. Harshana Sooriyapperuma, Janitha Ruwan Kodithuwakku, Punya Sri Kumara Jayakody, Ramalingam Chandrasekar, Dr. Najith Indika, Sugath Thilakaratne Lakmali Kanchana Hemachandra, Sunil Kumara Gamage, Gamini Rathnayake, Prof. Ruwan Chaminda Ranasinghe, Sugath Wasantha de Silva Abubakar Adambawa (Digamadulla District candidate), and Ranthnayake Hettige Upali Samarasinghe (Vanni District candidate).

Perhaps Prof. Subasinghe could have been appointed to Parliament through the National List if not for the controversial NPP decision to choose two defeated candidates, namely Abubakar Adambawa and Ranthnayake Hettige Upali Samarasinghe.

The NPP appeared to have conveniently forgotten its own high profile campaign, not only against nepotism in public sector appointments but favoured treatment to retired armed forces officers.

The Opposition is likely to press the NPP government over Premarathne’s appointment. The Excise Department is one of the three main revenue earners for the government. The other institutions are the Inland Revenue and the Sri Lanka Customs. Over the years, its reputation has been badly tarnished by corruption and manipulation at the highest level. During the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa administration (July 2022-Sept 2024), the Excise Department received the wrath of the Opposition, including the NPP, for backing Ranil Wickremesinghe’s abortive presidential election bid.

The Parliament has repeatedly found fault with the Inland Revenue, the Sri Lanka Customs and the Excise Department for failing to meet revenue targets. Their failures have been essentially blamed on corruption at all levels. Is Premarathne the best choice for this vital post? Can he meet the challenging task? The Opposition is likely to target the Excise Department as it battles to paint a bleak picture of the developing situation. Having promised transparency and accountability in the run-up to the presidential and parliamentary polls last year, the NPP owes the public a lucid explanation regarding the near simultaneous appointment of the retired Navy officer and his wife to public sector positions.

Social media platforms have given the public a limitless opportunity to vent their anger at the government. Commodore Premaratne’s appointment as Excise chief surprised many, particularly against the NPP’s harsh criticism of the previous administrations of their failure to run revenue earning mechanisms professionally.

The NPP’s accusations against other political parties appeared to have backfired on them.

Role for ex-military

The Rajapaksas were severely criticised for accommodating retired military officers in the public sector at the expense of deserving civilians. Quite a number of diplomatic postings, too, were offered to the ex-military, whereas some serving officers received top appointments.

Following the 2019 presidential election, a section of the media carried lists of ex-military officers holding public sector positions. In fact, both the UNP and the SLFP-led coalitions, as well as the SLPP, treated the ex-military lavishly.

The NPP that fielded Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the 2024 presidential election is led by the JVP. Dissanayake is the leader of both the JVP and the NPP that came into being only in 2019.

Commodore Premarathne’s appointment should be examined against the backdrop of the role played by the retired military officers/personnel grouping in the NPP’s triumph at national elections last year. Throughout the presidential-parliamentary polls campaigns, the retired military grouping played a significant role in transforming public mindset. Emergence of retired Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuiyakontha, as a key speaker at NPP platform, upset the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa government to such an extent that President Wickremeisnghe, in his capacity as the Defence Minister, imposed sanctions on the celebrated helicopter gunship pilot. The Defence Ministry ordered bases not to welcome him. Thuiyakontha hit back hard by seeking the intervention of the Supreme Court to overturn the Defence Ministry decision. The ex-AVM won the battle. The government ended up with egg on its face. Today Thuiyakontha is the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. Who could have anticipated the JVP/NPP picking a war veteran to receive the appointment as Secretary Defence and the unceremonious scrapping of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) post?

The NPP also brought in retired Maj. Gen. Aruna Jayasekera, who had also been a speaker on its political platforms, as the Deputy Minister of Defence. The Opposition never expected two senior retired military officers at such crucial positions in a JVP/NPP government, especially against the backdrop of the ruling party being at the receiving end of two bloody military crackdowns directed at them in 1971 and 1987-1990. Having launched two insurrections, the JVP suffered at the hands of the military like no other political party. The military, police and paramilitary groups, formed by the UNP, eradicated the top JVP leadership leaving only Somawansa Amarasinghe, who survived by the skin of his teeth by escaping to India on a boat before the military/government death squads could get their hands on him. He, too, could have been eliminated if not for the timely intervention of the Indian authorities who carried out a clandestine operation to remove him. Did some influential section of the then UNP facilitate the operation is a question that has never been honestly answered?

The NPP has indicated in no uncertain terms that whatever it campaigned for during national elections those who served its interests during difficult times would be looked after. In fact, those who threw their weight behind the NPP, at the onset of the Aragalaya that forced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa out of office, should be appreciated from the point of view of the NPP. The writer doesn’t see any wrong in that reasoning. The appointment of Rear Admiral (retd.) Fred Seneviratne, as Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to Pakistan, is a case in point. Seneviratne had been among those ex-senior military officers on NPP political platforms. Seneviratne, VSV, USP, psc, MSc (DS) assumed duties at the Sri Lanka High Commission, in Islamabad, on Thursday, 26 June, 2025.

For a long time, the top envoy’s position in Pakistan has been largely reserved for a retired military officer, regardless of the political party in power. There is no exception during the conflict that ended in 2009 and after. Pakistan is one of the few countries that backed the war against separatist Tamil terrorists.

The first post-Aragalaya parliamentary election paved the way for ex-military men to enter Parliament on the NPP ticket. Lieutenant Commander Prageeth Madhuranga (Gampaha) and Maj. Gen. G.D. Sooriyabandara (Kurunegala) were among the elected NPP members of its 159-member parliamentary group. Before the Aragalaya, the JVP/NPP fielding any ex-military officers at parliamentary elections sounded unreal. But Aragalaya has turned Sri Lanka politics upside down and the overall political environment changed to such an extent, the Rajapaksas had quite clearly lost the monopoly in fielding ex-military types at elections.

Controversial moves

The JVP/NPP lambasted the Rajapaksas bandyism and favouring close associates. The Rajapaksa family did that on an industrial scale. There was absolutely no limit to such political appointments. In fact, that had been one major campaign slogan against them at national elections in 2010, 2015, 2019, 2020 and 2024. However, the NPP, having been critical of nepotism, had no qualms in fielding Bimal Rathnayake’s wife Samanmalee Gunasinghe, a member of the JVP Central Committee from the Colombo district. While Bimal Rathnayake entered Parliament as the NPP’s first nominated member, Samanmalee Gunasinghe was elected. Now the Rathnayake duo represent the current Parliament.

The NPP’s General Secretary Dr. Nihal Abeysinghe and his son Chathuranga successfully contested Kalutara and Colombo districts, respectively, at the last parliamentary elections.

Political parties, representing the Opposition, cannot protest at such moves as they, right throughout parliamentary politics, practiced nepotism. However, the public can question such duplicitous conduct, especially through social media from those who cried hoarse about bringing a system change, but are now doing the exact same wrongs, albeit little by little. So folks don’t be surprised if it becomes an avalanche before long.

At the onset of AKD presidency, controversy erupted when he picked close friend and a contemporary at the Kelaniya University Nandika Sanath Kumanayake as Secretary to the President. Some questioned Kumanayake’s capacity to handle high pressure assignments though he had served as a Deputy Director of Customs. Of course President Dissanayake cannot be faulted for choosing a person he trusted.

Subsequently, the NPP drew fire when SSP Shanie Abeysekera and Senior DIG Ravi Seneviratne had been brought back from retirement with the intention of launching an all-out offensive, targeting those the government alleged were responsible for the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage. Now the continuing controversy over their appointments has taken a new turn with Leader of the House Bimal Rathnayake’s recent declaration that the two top ex-cops were taken back at the request of the Catholic Church. Rathnayake, without hesitation, named Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith as the prime mover in bringing back Messrs Abeysekera and Seneviratne.

Obviously there is no big mystery for the duo to crack as far as the Easter carnage is concerned, where outside forces hoodwinked local Muslim fanatics to carry out the dastardly acts by making them believe they were doing it for Al Qaeda.

The Catholic Church hasn’t contradicted the responsible NPPer’s declaration. Therefore, the Church’s intervention in making key appointments -Abeysekera as Director CID and Seneviratne as Secretary to the Ministry of Public Security Ministry – will now stick.

The recent dispute over the NPP move to appoint Pushpitha Chandana Hewa Kondilage as the Auditor General underscored the responsibility on the part of all concerned to adopt an open procedure. The move to bring in Kondilage now on the CPC Board of Directors, as the AG, drew widespread condemnation. They pushed for the formalisation of the appointment of Dharmapala Gammanpila, the Acting AG, with three decades of experience in the field.

The Committee on High Posts, chaired by Premier Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, granted approval for the appointment of retired Air Force Commander, Air Chief Marshal R.A.U.P. Rajapaksa, as the Sri Lanka High Commissioner to the Republic of South Africa.

The appointment of former Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya, PC, as Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, in New York, Nimal Senadheera, a former Sri Lanka Administrative Service (SLAS) officer, currently pursuing a PhD in Scotland, as the High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Prof. Janaka Kumarasinghe as Ambassador to Japan, and Prof. Arusha Cooray as Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), proved that the NPP will pursue its agenda, regardless of criticism. The government has simply ignored the protests by the Sri Lanka Foreign Service Association in this regard.

Speaker challenged

An issue that failed to attract sufficient media attention is the complaint lodged by Nawa Jathika Peramuna with the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) recently against Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne.

The complaint filed in terms of the Public Property Act and 2023 Anti-Corruption Act may not have received media attention at all if not for a hastily prepared press release issued by the Parliament. The move made by Nawa Jathika Peramuna is stimulating as its leader Sugeeshwara Bandara was the Private Secretary to the seventh executive President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Having backed Ranil

Wickremesinghe’s candidature at the 2024 presidential election, Sugeeswara Bandara’s move, is politically motivated and meant to humiliate the NPP. But, the political activist may find himself in hot water if unable to substantiate accusations directed at the Speaker and Parliament.

The bone of contention is whether the incumbent Speaker used an additional vehicle more than the two vehicles as stipulated, the use of a government housing unit other than the Speaker’s official residence and the favoured status granted to a member of his personal staff. The Parliament assured us that the Speaker’s personal staff comprised eight of whom four received a vehicle each and fuel allowance in terms of the relevant circulars. Nawa Janatha Peramuna insisted that according to information available, personal staff consisted of 15. Let CIABOC investigate and verify charges levelled by Bandara. If the former personal staffer of Gotabaya Rajapaksa is wrong, he must be prepared to face the consequences.

Parliament has completely contradicted Bandara’s claim pertaining to the conduct of the Speaker, whereas the activist posed a set of questions numbering 10 to the Parliament.

There had never been a previous instance of a Speaker being accused of corruption. The statement issued by Parliament, dated 06 July, disclosed that the incumbent Speaker on his own, this year, restricted the amount of litres of fuel he is entitled for to 900 litres, whereas previous Speakers drew unlimited quantities of fuel.

The previous and the NPP government’s first Speaker, Asoka Ranwala, had to leave his post under rather questionable circumstances as he could not confirm his claimed doctorate.

Bandara asked whether the Speaker received 900 litres of fuel in addition to the fuel allowance he received along with his monthly salary.

CIABOC will have to verify the high profile accusations. The Parliament cannot, under any circumstances, act in a manner that generated suspicions among the public as the country experienced extreme difficulties due to the continuing economic crisis. The decision on the part of the Speaker and Parliament to issue a statement contradicting accusations highlighted the gravity of the developing situation.

Interestingly, it was announced, last week, that the Speaker wants to convert his official residence into a knowledge hub for all elected public representatives from lowly local bodies to Parliament.

The NPP is struggling to maintain its public posture amidst various issues. The ruling party has succumbed to political pressures to such an extent, it ended up forging alliances with those who had been once called corrupt. Public responded with disbelief when the NPP reached consensus with those who had been previously accused of waste, corruption and irregularities teamed up with the NPP to form Local Government administrations. Norwood Pradeshiya Sabha is a case in point.

The Opposition will find it difficult to challenge the NPP in or outside Parliament as the public, at the presidential and parliamentary elections, annihilated them. They cannot take advantage of the developments while in power as their governments did the same.

Political parties represented in Parliament have remained silent on the issues raised by the Nawa Jathika Peramuna. At least the former Speakers who had been accused of using fuel allowance without restrictions should respond to the declaration made by Parliament.

Let me end this piece by reminding the lone battle fought by top House administrative official Lacille de Silva during Chandrika Bandaranaike Cumaratunga’s presidency when the then Speaker, the late W.J.M. Lokubandara, sacked him. The Speaker swiftly moved against de Silva after the JVP frontliner (current Minister in the NPP government) Lal Kantha lambasted Parliament for waste, corruption and irregularities on the basis of information provided by de Silva.

Ranil Wickremesinghe served as the Prime Minister during this period. Intrepid official successfully moved the Supreme Court against the Speaker’s move and emerged triumphant when the Supreme Court ruled against the controversial sacking. The Island, throughout de Silva’s campaign, stood by him. Lacille de Silva courageously made a series of disclosures that exposed those who sought to take cover behind parliamentary privileges.

The parliament, over the years, launched high profile projects to attract public attention. Some of these projects received the financial backing of the United Nations development Programme (UNDP). Perhaps the Parliament, and those working with the highest institution, should examine the conduct of the House.

Sri Lanka cannot continue with waste, corruption, irregularities and mismanagement at any level anywhere. The legislature, under any circumstances, cannot be above the law of the land. The same should apply to the executive, as well.

By Shamindra Ferdianndo

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Midweek Review

Opp. caught up in CIABOC offensive

Published

5 days ago

2026/06/24

Sahan Weerasooriya

Mahinda Rajapaksa leaving CIABOC on 12 June, 2026

The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) on 12 June questioned former President Mahinda Rajapaksa regarding the USD 2 Mn bribe allegation directed at the late SriLankan CEO Kapila Chandrasena, whose body was found on 8 May in a close relative’s home in Kollupitiya. Chandrasena’s alleged suicide sent shock waves through political circles and interested parties questioned the circumstances leading to him being granted bail on 6 May on cash bail of Rs. 500,000 with three sureties of Rs. 10 million each. The Colombo Magistrate court also imposed a travel ban. The issue at hand is as to how Mohamed Riswan and Mohamed Irshan stood as sureties for Chandrasekera. Of all the investigations undertaken by the CIABOC, the USD 2 Mn bribe case is the most politically charged probe.

Of the Rajapaksas, former State Minister Shasheendra Rajapaksa is so far the last to be indicted. CIABOC on 19 June filed indictments before the Colombo High Court against him and two others Sepalika Saman Kumari and Keerthi Bandara Kotagama. According to the charges, the accused are alleged to have committed the offence of corruption and aided and abetted the commission of the offence by using official influence to pressure certain government officials, attached to the Office for Reparations, to obtain compensation amounting to Rs. 8.85 million for a property built on a state land by Shasheendra and destroyed by marauding Aragalaya mobs.

By Shamindra Ferdinando

The ruling National People’s Power (NPP) government last week emphasised, in no uncertain terms, that it wouldn’t tolerate the growing Opposition challenge.

Amidst the growing controversy over the continuing detention of retired Maj. Gen. Suresh Sallay. in terms of the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), under humiliating conditions, in connection with the ongoing investigations into the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage, police arrested Sugeeshwara Bandara, leader of the New People’s Front (NPF). The Central Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) apprehended him on 18 June and the Fort Magistrate’s Court remended him till 1 July..

The CCIB also apprehended Binoy Hettiarachchi who was accompanying Bandara. Hettiarachchi served as a media coordinator at the former President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s Flower Road Office. Police intercepted their vehicle at Kollupitiya where the arrests were made like in an action-packed movie. Hettiarachchi was freed four hours later.

But, it would be better to identify Bandara as the former private secretary to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as well as the Director General of Special Projects at the Presidential Secretariat in the wake of Ranil Wickremesinghe taking over the presidency.

Accused of receiving two salaries simultaneously, under the President’s Expenditure Head, Bandara who managed the media for Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in the run-up to the 2019 presidential election, is under investigation for abuse of government vehicles and employing government workers for political work.

Having launched his political career as the Colombo District organiser of the alliance New People’s Front, a breakaway faction of the UPFA, in February, 2024, Bandara contested the November, 2024, parliamentary polls on the New Democratic Front (NDF) ticket. But, of late, Bandara, as the leader of NPF, became one of the most active opposition activists, aligned with the political grouping, dubbed People’s United Opposition, operating from Ranil Wickremesinghe’s Flower Road Office.

Bandara drew the wrath of the government when he launched a noisy protest outside Finance Secretary Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma’s residence at Akuregoda, Pelawatta, on 26 April, where he and his protesting supporters were given a shower of excreta. The group, led by Bandara, demanded the Finance Secretary’s resignation over the theft of USD 2.5 mn from the Treasury. No less a person than President Anura Kumara Dissanayake reacted angrily to Bandara’s actions.

Acknowledging the right for legitimate protests, the President warned against protests directed at residences of officials. On 18 April, Bandara led a protest outside Agriculture Minister K.D. Lal Kantha’s recently built luxury residence at Weliwita, Kaduwela, where he questioned how the JVPer managed to build such a home as he was on record as having repeatedly said that he lived a difficult life.

The police apprehended Bandara as he was returning from a meeting between senior representatives of the People’s United Opposition and the IMF Colombo at the Tiki Bar, Shangri-La. In spite of negligible parliamentary presence, with those elected on the NDF ticket at the last parliamentary election not really speaking in one voice, the Flower Road project has become a headache for the government.

In fact, the Flower Road operation has been causing continuous harassment to the NPP, while the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) struggled to play its anticipated role as the main Opposition. Instead of conducting a cohesive campaign against the cocky NPP government, members of the SJB seem to be pulling in different directions at the expense of the common opposition front.

Regardless of the Wickremesinghe-led grouping vowing to press ahead with its campaign, the arrest of Bandara is obviously meant to have a detrimental impact on the activities of the Opposition.

It would be pertinent to mention that Bandara had been among those who stayed with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the President’s House, in Colombo, as a massive protest erupted on 9 July, 2022. Bandara was among the last to flee the President’s House as the military withdrew, amidst mounting pressure on their positions.

The police arrested Bandara as former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa moved the Court of Appeal in terms of Article 140 of the Constitution to prevent him being arrested under the PTA. The wartime Defence Secretary sought the court intervention in the wake of police probing the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage and obtaining a travel ban against him.

The court heard Romesh de Silva PC’s submissions on behalf of the ex-President on 18 June. The court deferred the hearing to 24 June. The crux of the matter is that the ex-President fears that the CID is about to arrest him on the basis of a statement made by fugitive Azad Moulana, in Paris, linking Sallay directly with the Easter Sunday carnage.

NPP intensifies pressure

The NPP seems confident of its current course of action meant to pin down the Opposition. In spite of unbridled corruption being the major issue on the post-war election platform, no political party succeeded in going flat-out against the political opposition.

However, the NPP allowed the judicial process to continue. The first major sentencing was announced on 2 April, 2025, just six months after the parliamentary polls, handsomely won by the NPP. The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) moved the Colombo High Court successfully against the former Chief Minister of the North Central Province S.M. Ranjith Samarakoon.

Colombo High Court No. 01 Judge Adithya Patabendige sentenced him in terms of Section 70 of the Bribery Act. The HC declared the former CM perpetrated malpractices by ordering fuel to his personal secretary’s vehicle. The personal secretary happened to be Shanthi Chandrasena, wife of his brother S.M. Chandrasena, a former Cabinet Minister and one of the most powerful Ministers to represent the North Central province.

The ex- Chief Minister and the second accused, his personal secretary, were convicted guilty of two charges. Both were sentenced to 16 years rigorous imprisonment and were also ordered to pay a fine of Rs. 200,000/- with an additional two-year prison term in case of default.

Deputy Director General Asitha Anthoney appeared on behalf of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption.

There had never been any really coordinated CIABOC campaign against corruption. No political party, or a particular family, felt threatened by CIABOC. Both those in and outside Parliament acted with impunity. They feared no one. There was no need to be because the powerful and the influential operated above the law.

Just a couple of weeks after sentencing of S.M. Ranjith Samarakoon and Shanthini Chandrasena, the CIABOC arrested the latter’s husband, one-time Deputy Economic Development Minister and Special Projects Minister, S.M. Chandrasena. The CIABOC took him into custody on 4 July, 2025.

The CIABOC accused the former Minister of causing loss to the government by distributing seed corn, imported at a cost of Rs 25 mn, in 2024, among the farmer community in the Anuradhapura district, at a subsidised price. The distribution had taken place ahead of the 2015 presidential election contested by Mahinda Rajapaksa and estranged former SLFP General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena. The CIABOC alleged that Chandrasena exerted undue influence on the Director (Planning) and other officers of the District Secretariat and distributed seeds through his political allies to gain an advantage in the 2015 presidential election and incurred a loss to the government.

Chandrasena was granted bail on 1 August, 2025. He was indicted on 12 June before the Colombo High Court.

Before further discussing the ongoing anti-corruption campaign, let me introduce the top leadership of CIABOC. The Commission consists of Justice W.M.N.P. Iddawela (Chairman), K.B. Rajapakse and Chethiya Goonesekera P.C, with High Court judge R.S.A. Dissanayake as its Director General.

The sentencing of the S. M. Ranjith Samarakoon didn’t really bother his side. The arrest of his brother S.M. Chandrasena, too, didn’t really upset those facing charges. But, sentencing of former Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage and former Sathosa Chairman and former Trade Minister Nalin Fernando on 29 May, 2025, sent shock waves through the Opposition.

The Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar sentenced Aluthgamage and Fernando for committing the offence of corruption by purchasing 14,000 carrom boards and 11,000 checkers boards through Sathosa, allegedly to distribute to schools and sports clubs selected by the Sports Ministry, and distributing them to party offices of the government, during the 2015 presidential election campaign thereby, causing a loss of over 53 million rupees to the government, stunned the Opposition.

Aluthgamage was sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment, Fernando received a sentence of 25 years of rigorous imprisonment. Additionally, a fine of Rs. 100,000 (hundred thousand) was imposed for each count.

The CIABOC’s Assistant Director General Mrs. Anuththara Jayasinghe and Assistant Director General Mrs. Thushari Dayaratne conducted the prosecution.

During the Yahapalana government Aluthgamage spearheaded a high profile anti-corruption campaign, dubbed ‘Yahapalana Top 10 kamba horu’. The then Joint Opposition (JO) group, led in Parliament by Dinesh Gunawardena, published a 750-page book, targeting the Yahapalana ministers. Mahindananda, who spearheaded that campaign, is now serving a long sentence.

The JO group consists of UPFA lawmakers who declined to throw their weight behind the then President Sirisena aligned with the UNP.

Let me mention the names of those against whom the accusations were made by the JO.

Yahapalana corruption

The JO dealt with 10 major cases. (1) The Treasury bond scams perpetrated in 2015 and 2016. Accusations were directed at Ranil Wickremesinghe, Ravi Karunanayake and Governor Central Bank Arjuna Mahendran. The losses were estimated at Rs 26 bn. (2) causing losses amounting to Rs 10 bn through the fraudulent import of vehicles. Ravi Karunanayake was named the chief culprit (3) Misappropriation of Mahapola funds to the tune of Rs. 1 bn. Allegations were directed at Malik Samarawickrema (4) Stealing from an insurance scheme implemented for the benefit of those going for employment in West Asia. The JO accused Thalatha Atukarale of misappropriating funds amounting Rs 1.5 bn (5) Receiving Rs 1.5 bn through the leasing of Hambantota port to China on a 99-year lease. Ranil Wickremesinghe, Malik Samarawickrema and R. Paskaralingam were named the offenders (6) Kabir Hashim was accused of causing a loss of Rs 54 bn by cancelling aircraft ordered from Airbus Industries for the national carrier (7) fraudulent activities pertaining to the release of paddy stocks held by the government. The JO estimated the losses caused to the government at Rs 10 bn. (8) Scam in vehicle parts. Ravil Karunanayake was accused of causing losses amounting to Rs. 6.5 bn, (9 A) Dr. Rajitha Senaratne was accused of leasing of the Modera fisheries harbor and procurement of eight vessels to catch fish, fraudulently, and thereby causing losses up to Rs 1 bn, (9B) The JO also found fault with Dr. Senaratne for perpetrating Rs 1.5 bn fraud in the procurement of medicine and lastly (10) Ranil Wickremesinghe, Malik Samarawickrema, R. Paskaralingam and Charitha Ratwatte were blamed for a massive fraud in the procurement of coal for the Norochcholai coal-fired power plant. That particular fraud was estimated at Rs 5 bn.

Although the JO transformed itself to Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) later, to successfully contested the 2019 presidential election, none of the above-mentioned cases were investigated. As far as we know, none of those cases had been dealt with during the SLPP rule, from November, 2019, to July, 2022. Faced with an externally backed regime change operation, the SLPP invited Wickremesinghe, who had been named by them in three major corruption cases, to accept the premiership in May, 2022, and presidency in July same year.

So far, there is no indication whether the mentioned JO allegations had received the attention of the CIABOC or the Attorney General of the government. As far as we know of all the politicians and officials, Wickremesinghe is the only one facing imminent threat due to the ongoing case pertaining to him visiting the UK in September, 2023, to join his wife Prof. Maithree at the University of Wolverhampton at her graduation ceremony.

Wickremesinghe has been accused of squandering nearly 17 mn rupees at a time the country was in deep economic turmoil. The Fort Magistrate’s court is scheduled to take up the case on 8 July.

SLPP parliamentary group leader Namal Rajapaksa is also facing a major legal challenge. The former Minister has been indicted on charges of criminal misappropriation of Rs. 70 mn in connection with the controversial Krrish project. The indictments have been forwarded to the Colombo High Court by the Attorney General, alleging that Namal Rajapaksa misappropriated funds by receiving Rs. 70 million from the Indian real estate company for the development of rugby in Sri Lanka.

Yoshitha Rajapaksa, too, has been dealt with by the CIABOC. The Rajapaksas have been accused of lowering qualifications required to join the executive branch of the Navy and then sending him to the Royal Naval Academy in the United Kingdom at taxpayers’ expense. Produced before the Colombo Additional Magistrate, Yoshitha was released on three personal bail bonds of Rs. 5 million each.

Producing Yoshitha before court on 17 June, Deputy Director General of the Bribery Commission, Ruvini Wickramasinghe declared: “”Your Honour, the complaint regarding this incident was received on June 25, 2016. Accordingly, the Commission initiated investigations. The complaint states that the suspect had participated in naval training programmes held in England and Ukraine by misusing government funds, while depriving qualified applicants of such opportunities. At that time, this individual, who is a civilian in the dock today, was also a civilian in 2006 when he was deemed eligible for the Royal Navy Young Officer training at the Royal Naval Academy in the United Kingdom. The opportunities to receive this training are extremely limited. Your Honour, selection to this prestigious course is usually based on being the most outstanding cadet officer during a two-year training period or based on performance during training. However, this suspect, although a civilian in 2006, was proposed and included in the list and was sent for the course in haste.”

The Deputy Director General also stated that Yoshitha Rajapaksa had undergone medical examinations required for overseas training even before being officially recruited into the Navy.

The court was also told that though Sri Lanka previously received scholarships from the UK the Rajapaksa government funded Yoshitha to the tune of Rs 6.2 mn.

Opp. attacks CIABOC

The Opposition has repeatedly attacked the CIABOC with its Director General Ranga Dissanayake being the primary target. Accusing Dissanayake of being a JVPer, the Opposition has repeatedly questioned the conduct of the High Court judge demanding that the CIABOC inquired into the top official’s conduct, especially with regard to the alleged suicide of former Sri Lankan CEO Kapila Chandrasena who had been under investigation pertaining to the receiving of USD 2 mn bribe to facilitate procurement aircraft from Airbus Industrie during Mahinda Rajapaksa’s second term.

Former Foreign Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris, a regular speaker at Flower Road media briefings, alleged that the CIABOC was a political tool in the NPP’s hands.

A section of the Opposition to question the circumstances one-time JVP heavyweight Nandana Gunatilleke died in January this year at the Ragama Teaching Hospital after accusing Dissanayake of pursuing an agenda beneficial to the JVP, a charge denied by the High Court judge. When the writer raised the allegations with Dissanayake, he emphatically denied any wrongdoing on his part https://island.lk/ciaboc-dg-denies-jvp-link/.

The CIABOC has simply ignored accusations directed at its DG who proved through his actions that he really meant high profile public pronouncements against corruption.

Former Deputy Minister and ex-MP Sarana Gunawardena was sentenced to a total of 16 years rigorous imprisonment by the Colombo High Court on June 8, 2026.

During the Yahapalana administration many cases, filed by the CIABOC as well as the Attorney General, were either dismissed or dropped due to lapses on their part. The accused in such cases were ex-MP Sajin Vass Gunawardena, ex-EP Chief Minister Sivanesathurei Chandrakanthan alias Pilleyan, ex-Ministers Johnston Fernando, Rohitha Abeygunawardena, Basil Rajapaksha, Mahindananda Aluthgamage and Janaka Bandara Tennakoon and former AG and CJ Mohan Peiris.

Regardless of Opposition protests, the public appreciate tangible action against corruption. However, the NPP has not been free from serious allegations against it since the last general elections. The release of suspicious 323 containers, plus two containers filled with ice, in January, 2025, followed by the massive coal scam perpetrated in September 2025, loss of over USD 2.5 mn from the Treasury and controversial Aswesuma payments, as well as wealth, accumulated by NPP Ministers as revealed by declarations made to CIABOC, shocked the electorate.

The NPP has failed to counter allegations. The circumstances under which Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody resigned, along with Energy Secretary Udayanga Hemapala, on 17 April, just a week after the NPP defeated the no-confidence motion moved by the Opposition against the Energy Minister. dealt a devastating blow to the NPP’s much touted integrity. The NPP couldn’t explain as to why a person under investigation by the CIABOC for an alleged fraud perpetrated during the Yahapalana government was accommodated in President Dissanayake’s first Cabinet. Indicted before the Colombo High Court, Jayakody’s case commenced last week.

Asset declarations of some NPP Ministers have shocked the country. The SJB has called for CIABOC to investigate them without delay and prove that CIABOC was not only going after the Opposition. Ministers Lal Kantha and Wasantha Samarasinghe are two of the top JVPers who have attracted attention as the Opposition hits back at the government.

SJB MP Mujibur Rahuman said that the JVP/NPP owed an explanation as to how their members amassed so much wealth since 2024 as they repeatedly claimed their inability to meet even their basic needs. But, their asset declarations exposed their blatant lies.

Midweek Review

Geopolitics of the Indian Ocean

Published

5 days ago

2026/06/24

Sahan Weerasooriya

Listening to the Winds, Reading the Waves:

Prof. Gamini Keerawella’s latest publication, Winds and Waves: Geopolitical Currents in the Indian Ocean since 1945 will be launched on 5 August at the Auditorium of the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies (BCIS). The keynote address will be delivered by Prof. T. V. Paul, James, McGill Professor of Political Science at McGill University, Canada and the former President of the International Studies Association (ISA).

Prof. Keerawella, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Peradeniya, has dedicated hisbook to the memory of Dr. Newton Gunasinghe, the eminent sociologist and Marxist theoretician who encouraged him to venture beyond disciplinary frontiers. In many respects, this work represents a successful realization of that intellectual endeavour. In her testimonial to back cover of the book, Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy observes that “Gamini Keerawella offers a nuanced and layered account of the Indian Ocean region’s strategic evolution from the era of decolonization to the contemporary phase of intensifying great-power rivalry. Its distinctive analytical perspective makes it an important contribution to the study of international relations, maritime geopolitics, and regional strategic dynamics.” This assessment accurately captures the significance of the work, and I fully endorse her judgement.

This volume constitutes the final publication of a trilogy that explores the evolving dynamics of international relations from a distinctly Sri Lankan perspective. The first study examined the trajectory of Sri Lanka’s defence and foreign policy, while the second revisited the origins, evolution, and principal constituent elements of international relations as an academic discipline from a Global South perspective. The present work broadens the analytical canvas by tracing the shifting geopolitical contours of the Indian Ocean since 1945 and examining the evolving interplay between great-power competition and regional agency.

Indian Ocean not merely maritime transit space

At the heart of Prof. Keerawella’s analysis is the argument that the Indian Ocean is not merely a maritime space of transit but a living archive whose language is inscribed in tides, trade, and collective memory. To uncover the deeper structures that have shaped the region, he draws on Michel Foucault’s concept of the archaeology of knowledge, probing beneath the visible layers of historical experience to reveal successive strata of thought, exchange, and power. This approach enables him to trace the multiple origins of the Indian Ocean’s geopolitical significance through the sedimented traces of how the ocean has been known, governed, and imagined across time. Complementing this perspective is Fernand Braudel’s concept of the longue durée, which provides the framework for understanding the long-term evolution of Indian Ocean geopolitics. As Keerawella notes, for Braudel, history unfolds not as a single linear sequence but as a layered field of continuity and change, revealing the deeper architecture of the past—the slow yet powerful currents that shape political and economic developments beneath the surface of events (Keerawella 2026: xxiii).Prof. Keerawella further notes that later historians such as K. N. Chaudhuri and M. N. Pearson drew on Braudel’s insights and adapted them to understand the Indian Ocean as a polycentric world.

Prof. Keerawella argues that the terms employed in the title of this work—Winds, Waves, and Currents—evoke the ocean’s dual language of surface movement and underlying structure. In his reading, winds and waves signify motion: the visible and often turbulent forces that carry ships, peoples, commodities, and ideas across shifting maritime frontiers. Currents, by contrast, refer to the deeper and less visible forces that shape historical trajectories and connect coasts and continents through enduring patterns of interaction. As he observes, while winds and waves represent the restless dynamics of the ocean’s surface, currents embody the slower yet more consequential energies that operate beneath it, binding disparate regions into a larger maritime system (2026: xx).

Metaphors and Conceptual Foundation

Building on this conceptual foundation, the author employs winds, waves, and currents not merely as metaphors but also as analytical categories. Winds represent changing strategic directions and geopolitical realignments; waves denote recurring cycles of commerce, conflict, and interaction; and currents symbolize the deep structural forces that connect societies across space and time. Viewed from a distinctly Sri Lankan perspective, the volume demonstrates how a strategically located small state at the centre of the Indian Ocean perceives and navigates this maritime space through its own strategic lens. The book opens by situating Sri Lanka within the intersecting forces of history, geography, and power that have shaped the Indian Ocean world. It advances the notion of a dual strategic consciousness that has informed Sri Lanka’s external engagements: a persistent sense of vulnerability, rooted in colonial experience and geographical exposure, coexisting with a cosmopolitan outlook forged through centuries of maritime exchange. Prof. Keerawella contends that this dual consciousness constitutes the underlying framework through which Sri Lanka has historically interpreted and responded to developments in its external environment.

Winds and Waves is a comprehensive study comprising eleven chapters and an extensive introduction that establishes the analytical foundations of the work by treating the ocean simultaneously as text and method. The opening chapter situates Sri Lanka within the wider Indian Ocean system, tracing the island’s navigation through shifting configurations of power while emphasising the agency of small states. The Indian Ocean is presented not merely as a strategic arena but also as a moral and political space, linking Sri Lanka’s historical experience to the broader aspirations and consciousness of the Global South.

Revisiting British withdrawal

The book revisits Britain’s withdrawal from the Indian Ocean, arguing that it was not simply a consequence of post-war decline but the culmination of deeper structural transformations in the international system. Decolonisation, Afro-Asian nationalism, and the emergence of bipolarity fundamentally altered the regional order and created the conditions for Britain’s retreat. In turn, this withdrawal opened the way for superpower competition, particularly between the United States and the Soviet Union, transforming the Indian Ocean into major theatre of Cold War geopolitics.

A substantial portion of the volume is devoted to examining the policies and strategic trajectories of the major powers. The author traces American engagement from Cold War containment through post-Cold War maritime predominance to contemporary Indo-Pacific formulations, demonstrating that U.S. strategy has evolved through the interaction of structural imperatives and changing strategic discourses. Particular attention is paid to the 2026 U.S.–Iran War, which is interpreted as a transformative event that exposed the limits of military hegemony and accelerated patterns of strategic hedging and multi-alignment among regional actors. The book also explores the Soviet Union’s entry into the Indian Ocean in 1968 and the subsequent re-emergence of Russia under Vladimir Putin through selective naval deployments, arms transfers, and strategic partnerships, illustrating what the author characterises as the recurrent rhythms of great-power engagement in the region.

The rise of China receives extensive treatment as one of the most significant structural developments of the twenty-first century. Through the Belt and Road Initiative, port development projects, and naval modernisation, China has translated growing economic power into expanding strategic influence. The author contrasts Beijing’s assertive posture in the South China Sea with its relatively restrained approach in the Indian Ocean, where economic diplomacy and cooperative security initiatives have assumed greater prominence. Equally significant is the discussion of India’s transformation from a regional power into an emerging global strategic actor. The evolution of Indian maritime strategy—from Nehruvian custodianship to contemporary blue-water ambitions—demonstrates how a rising power navigates structural constraints while expanding its strategic reach. Initiatives such as SAGAR, naval modernization, and deepening partnerships with the United States, Japan, and Australia have positioned India as a central actor in the evolving Indo-Pacific order.

Roles of Japan and EU examined

The volume also examines the roles of Japan and the European Union in shaping the contemporary maritime order. Japan’s transition from post-war restraint to proactive strategic engagement, embodied in the Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) vision, illustrates how middle powers adapt to changing geopolitical realities through coalition-building and maritime capacity enhancement. The European Union’s engagement is portrayed through less visible but nevertheless significant mechanisms, including trade, development cooperation, maritime governance, and norm diffusion, contributing to what the author terms a form of “quiet-making multipolarity” that encourages restraint, stability, and pragmatic cooperation.

Moving beyond conventional geopolitics, the book broadens the analytical framework to address a range of non-traditional security challenges confronting South Asia in general and Sri Lanka in particular. Climate change, piracy, illegal fishing, maritime terrorism, public health vulnerabilities, and digital insecurity are examined as transnational challenges that transcend the capabilities of individual states. The author argues that these issues reveal the limits of unilateral action and underscore the growing importance of cooperation, collective action, institutional innovation, and middle-power leadership in maritime governance.

Prof. Keerawella further situates the Indian Ocean within the wider context of the emerging Asian Century. Asia’s resurgence—driven principally by China and India and reinforced by the dynamism of Southeast Asia—is presented as a major reconfiguration of global power. In this transformation, the Indian Ocean functions as a vital maritime artery connecting energy resources, manufacturing centres, and consumer markets. At the same time, the author cautions against deterministic interpretations, emphasising that the realisation of the Asian Century remains contingent upon how the region responds to persistent inequalities, environmental challenges, governance deficits, and intensifying strategic competition.

Assessing how SL has navigated shifts

The book concludes by returning to Sri Lanka and assessing how the country has navigated contemporary shifts in the regional and global balance of power under the National People’s Power (NPP) government that emerged in the aftermath of the Aragalaya of 2022. The author demonstrates how economic crisis, demands for accountability, and aspirations for a new political culture have reshaped the domestic context within which foreign policy is conducted. Under President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Sri Lanka is portrayed as pursuing a carefully calibrated strategy that combines engagement with international financial institutions, enhanced cooperation with India in defence and energy sectors, continued economic engagement with China, and functional security relations with the United States. The government’s response to the 2026 U.S.–Iran War—rejecting military access requests from all parties while extending humanitarian assistance—serves as an illustration of the author’s broader argument that strategic flexibility, principled neutrality, and diplomatic agility remain essential for small states navigating an increasingly complex Indian Ocean order.

Taken together, the book advances several interconnected propositions. First, the Indian Ocean is entering an increasingly multipolar era in which power is exercised through complex networks of cooperation, competition, and interdependence rather than rigid alliance structures. Second, small states are neither passive spectators nor mere proxies of great powers; they possess strategic agency and navigate competing pressures through hedging, diversification, and calibrated diplomacy. Third, Sri Lanka’s strategic behaviour—characterised by navigating asymmetry through flexibility and ambiguity—reflects a historically rooted dual consciousness that combines vulnerability with cosmopolitan engagement. Fourth, non-traditional security challenges and environmental governance are no longer peripheral concerns but central components of the evolving regional order.

Need for adaptive navigation

Prof. Keerawella argues that contemporary statecraft in the Indian Ocean requires adaptive navigation rather than rigid alignment. In a fluid and contested maritime environment, survival and influence depend less on resisting structural change than on understanding and responding to it with prudence, flexibility, and strategic clarity. The book therefore offers important insights into how small states can transform structural vulnerability into strategic agency and convert exposure into opportunities for engagement within a changing regional order.

Combining historical depth with contemporary analysis, it provides a nuanced understanding of the interaction between great-power competition, regional transformation, and the strategic choices of smaller states. The book will be of considerable value to students and scholars of international relations, political science, strategic studies, and maritime affairs, while also offering useful perspectives to policymakers, diplomats, and practitioners. Equally important, it opens several promising avenues for future research on the Indian Ocean and the emerging Indo-Pacific order.

Hermeneutic approachs

Methodologically, the study draws upon hermeneutic approaches to examine the geopolitical and maritime environments that shape relationships among states, societies, and historical processes. The result is a work that is both analytically rigorous and intellectually engaging. This review has sought less to evaluate the book in a conventional sense than to introduce its central themes and encourage a wider readership to engage with its arguments. Having highlighted the many merits of the volume, it is worth noting one technical shortcoming: the absence of an index. Given the book’s wide thematic scope and rich empirical content, the inclusion of an index would have significantly enhanced its value as a reference tool for researchers and students alike.

In sum, Prof. Keerawella listens attentively to the winds, reads the waves with analytical precision, and traces the deeper currents that shape the Indian Ocean world. The outcome is Winds and Waves: Geopolitical Currents in the Indian Ocean since 1945, a timely and thought-provoking contribution published by the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies.

Reviewed by
Dr. Ramesh Ramasamy
Department of Political Science, University
of Peradeniya