Badulla District Parliamentarian Chamara Sampath Dassanayake, who was arrested by the Commission to Investigate Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC), has been remanded until the 1st of next month by the Colombo Chief Magistrate.
Dassanayake was summoned by CIABOC this morning over an incident in which the government suffered a loss of Rs. 173 million. The loss occurred when he withdrew money from six fixed deposit accounts maintained by the Uva Provincial Council at a state bank before their maturity.
Reportedly, he withdrew the funds as a form of retaliation against the bank. The incident dates back to 2016 when Dassanayake, serving as the Chief Minister of Uva Province, requested financial contributions from three state banks to provide school bags for preschool children in the province.
Two state banks complied, granting Rs. 1 million and Rs. 2.5 million, respectively. However, instead of using the funds for the intended purpose, Dassanayake credited the money to his personal foundation account.
The third state bank refused to provide funds. In response, Dassanayake withdrew six fixed deposits belonging to the Uva Provincial Council from the bank before their maturity, allegedly to “teach the bank a lesson.”
Following a complaint filed in 2016 by then-provincial Councillor and current Minister Samantha Vidyaratne, CIABOC launched an investigation. The commission stated in court that the government had incurred a loss of Rs. 173 million due to Dassanayake’s actions.
Dassanayake was later presented before Colombo Chief Magistrate Tanuja Lakmali. Three charges were filed against him. While he was granted bail on two charges, the magistrate ordered his remand until the 1st of next month on the charge of causing financial losses to the government by prematurely withdrawing the funds.
