Sugeeshwara Bandara, a former private secretary to former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, has been further remanded until August 25 after being produced before the Colombo Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.
Ada Derana described him as a political activist. Hiru News reported that he was brought to the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court by prison officers in a Prisons Department bus earlier in the morning.
Wednesday’s appearance was the court date fixed at his previous hearing, when he was remanded until August 12 and his bail application was rejected. Neither report said whether bail was sought again on Wednesday.
The allegations
Bandara is accused of drawing two salaries under the President’s expenditure head — serving as a secretary to Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2022 while also working as a Project Director at the Presidential Secretariat during Ranil Wickremesinghe’s tenure.
Investigating officers have told court that Rs. 1.93 million was allegedly misused during his time as a secretary to the President and a further Rs. 4.26 million while he served as a Project Director General — around Rs. 6.19 million in total. The alleged offences fall under Section 5(1) of the Public Property Act and provisions of the Penal Code.
The Central Crime Investigation Bureau is also examining allegations that state vehicles were misused and that staff were deployed for political activities while he held the two posts.
He was arrested by the CCIB in June over the alleged double salary and has been remanded at successive hearings since, including on July 22 and July 30.
The allegations have not been proven and the case remains before the court.
