A fiery response has erupted from former President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s camp following what his media unit calls “blatantly false” claims made by Cabinet Spokesperson Minister Nalinda Jayatissa at a press briefing on April 29. The controversy centers around allegations that Wickremesinghe skipped a scheduled appearance before the Bribery Commission and attempted to delay proceedings.
At the Cabinet media briefing, Minister Jayatissa alleged that Wickremesinghe had taken to social media on April 11 to excuse himself from appearing before the Commission, claiming he’d return instead on April 17. However, that timeline has now been thrown into question.
In a twist, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, speaking in Batticaloa on April 12, claimed he had seen a letter stating Wickremesinghe wouldn’t appear on April 17 either, citing New Year festivities as the reason. But Wickremesinghe’s media unit has come forward to firmly deny these claims, stating that he himself never sent any letter to the Bribery Commission.
Instead, a formal request to defer the appearance date was sent by President’s Counsel Ronald Perera, asking that the scheduled date of April 17 be moved to April 28.
Despite this, the Bribery Commission proceeded to send a formal letter to Wickremesinghe on April 21, pressing charges of corruption under the Anti-Corruption Act No. 09 of 2023. Tensions escalated further when a second letter on April 25 accused the former President of “unnecessary interference.”
Interestingly, while the initial summons on April 11 came from Deputy Director General Asitha Anthony, the more serious follow-up letters were issued directly by Director General R.S.A. Dissanayake—raising eyebrows about escalating seriousness behind closed doors.
With allegations, denials, and political crossfire heating up, this saga is far from over. Is this legal drama a genuine pursuit of justice—or just another political vendetta in disguise?
