In a landmark ruling on a long-running corruption case, the Colombo Permanent High Court Trial-at-Bar has sentenced two former government ministers Mahindananda Aluthgamage and Nalin Ruwanjeewa Fernando—to 20 and 25 years of rigorous imprisonment, respectively. The judgment comes after they were found guilty of misappropriating state funds during the run-up to the 2015 presidential election.
Mahindananda Aluthgamage, who served as the Minister of Sports, and Nalin Fernando, the former Chairman of the Sri Lanka Sports Federation and also Minister of Trade, were jointly implicated in a scheme that involved the procurement and distribution of 14,000 carrom boards and 11,000 draughts (dam) boards. The Bribery Commission filed charges asserting that the two men had misused public funds under the guise of promoting sports development in the country.
According to the prosecution, the fraudulent activity took place between 1 September and 31 December 2014. The duo allegedly utilized the Sri Lanka Sports Federation to import the sports goods, which were then handed out to various sports associations and clubs across the island. The court found that this large-scale distribution had less to do with developing grassroots sports and more with garnering political favour ahead of the 2015 election.
The three-judge bench ruled that the charges had been proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The financial damage to the government was estimated at Rs. 53.1 million. While Nalin Fernando, a former trader turned politician, was slapped with a 25-year prison sentence, Aluthgamage received 20 years of rigorous imprisonment. Both were also ordered to pay additional fines.
The ruling marks a rare instance of a successful high-level conviction in Sri Lanka for politically-linked corruption. The severity of the punishment reflects the judiciary’s growing stance on abuse of office and the politicisation of public resources. It sends a strong message amid ongoing calls for transparency and accountability in public service.
