By Ruwan Weerakoon
(Lanka-e-News -13 Oct 2026,8.00 P.M.) Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama today (Oct. 13) rejected Member of Parliament Namal Rajapaksa's bail application and ordered him remanded until October 27, after the Bribery Commission told the court it will ask the Chief Justice to appoint a Permanent Trial-at-Bar bench to hear the case against him and other defendants. The case concerns the alleged bribery in the purchase of Airbus aircraft for SriLankan Airlines.
Appearing for the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) with State Counsel Sajith Bandara, Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara told the court that investigations have concluded and the extracts have been forwarded to the Attorney General and the Commission's Legal Division.
"The Attorney General has issued instructions to name 'Bee Solutions Company' as the 5th suspect in this case," he said. The company is registered in Brunei, and the 2nd suspect, Priyanka Neomali Wijenayake, has functioned as its director.
Single indictment, Trial-at-Bar request.
The Deputy Solicitor General said charges will be presented under a single indictment under the Bribery Act and the Money Laundering Act. The indictment has been drafted and sent to the Attorney General.
Considering the impact on the state, the Attorney General concluded that a request should be made to the Chief Justice under Section 12(a)(1)(a) of the Judicature Act to appoint a Permanent Trial-at-Bar bench. The Commission has agreed and will dispatch the request. "I believe that request has already been dispatched; if not, the Commission will send it today or tomorrow," he said. "The suspect's mother and father are hospitalized"
Presenting the bail application for Namal Rajapaksa, President's Counsel Shavendra Fernando argued that the conclusion of investigations and the Trial-at-Bar request amounted to exceptional grounds for bail. He also told the court that the suspect's mother and father have been hospitalized.
Deputy Solicitor General Bandara objected, saying bail should not be discussed at this stage. Once a case is to be filed before a Trial-at-Bar bench, he argued, the Magistrate's Court lacks jurisdiction to consider bail, which must be addressed after the bench is appointed. He said filing is proceeding at maximum speed.
Delivering his order, the Magistrate said the prosecution had undertaken to file the case promptly, so no delay was expected between the end of investigations and filing. The conclusion of investigations therefore could not be treated as an exceptional circumstance.
On the claim about the suspect's parents, he noted that no medical reports or documents had been submitted, so the court could not consider it.
The Magistrate directed the Commission to file charges without delay and report to his court. He noted that, once filed, bail applications would be made before the Trial-at-Bar bench, and that confusion over which court should hear them must be avoided. He added that his court's power to consider bail ends only once the case is filed before that bench, and until then the suspect may apply again if exceptional circumstances arise.
In a separate matter, the same Magistrate ordered Shiranthi Rajapaksa further remanded until October 16. She is accused of misappropriating Rs. 10 million in 2010, transferred from the National Savings Bank to the 'Siriliya Saviya' account on the pretext of buying a CT scanner for the Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children.
Reviewing a three-page medical report from the Deputy Director of Health Services, the Magistrate noted that it contained no indication or recommendation of open-heart surgery. A specialized medical panel has been appointed to assess her condition, and its report is due in court on Friday, when a decision on her bail application will be announced.
An appeal against a verdict or sentence handed down by a Trial-at-Bar can only be heard and determined by the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka.
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by (2026-10-13 14:40:24)
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