COLOMBO: Sri Lanka sentenced a former deputy minister to 16 years in prison for graft on Tuesday (June 9), as it intensifies a corruption crackdown after the toppling of its powerful political clan.
Sarana Gunawardena (pic), who served as a junior minister under former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, is the latest member of the ousted Rajapaksa administration to be jailed this year.
He was convicted of four separate charges and was sentenced to four years on each count to be served consecutively for a total of 16 years in jail, a court official said.
Sri Lanka is waging an anti-graft campaign targeting political figures, particularly allies of the Rajapaksa family that dominated the South Asian island country's politics for years.
Mass protests in 2022 toppled then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was accused of mismanagement and corruption.
Sarana Gunawardena was charged with financial misconduct for pocketing kickbacks from vendors after overpaying them 11.5 million rupees (US$115,000 at the time) for renting vehicles and buildings nearly two decades ago.
The High Court rejected appeals by Gunawardena's lawyers for leniency and said that a jail sentence was necessary to deter public sector corruption.
It also fined him 1.8 million rupees.
Gunawardena is the latest member of the Rajapaksa administration to be jailed in the past year, following the imprisonment of former ministers Mahindananda Aluthgamage and Nalin Fernando, who received lengthy prison terms ranging from 20 to 25 years.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake's leftist government, which came to power after Sri Lanka's crippling financial meltdown, has strengthened the powers of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption.
Anti-Rajapaksa protesters blamed entrenched corruption within state institutions for contributing to the 2022 economic crisis.
The International Monetary Fund's $2.9 billion bailout programme requires governance reforms and stronger action against financial misconduct.
Authorities have also stepped up investigations into several high-profile criminal cases allegedly involving former political leaders.
A court imposed a foreign travel ban last week on toppled president Gotabaya Rajapaksa over allegations linked to the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings, which killed 279 people.
Gotabaya's intelligence chief Suresh Sallay is already in custody, accused of masterminding the attacks to create chaos and pave the way for Gotabaya's return to power, an allegation Sallay has denied. - AFP
