The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) arrested the former Chairman of the Western Province Road Passenger Transport Authority, Opatha Vithanage Prasanna Sanjeewa, on Tuesday, and he was released on bail the same day.
Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama ordered his release on two surety bails of Rs. 500,000 each and imposed a travel ban, Hiru News reported.
The allegation
CIABOC alleges that in 2020 Sanjeewa bypassed the authority’s standard tender procedure to issue two expressway passenger transport permits — for the Kaduwela–Kollupitiya and Maharagama–Moratuwa routes.
The irregular procedure caused a loss of Rs. 4,160,000 to the state while conferring an unlawful advantage on outside parties, investigators told the court. The Daily Mirror reported that the arrest followed an investigation into alleged corruption during his tenure, and that the conduct is said to have violated the Western Province Road Passenger Transport Authority Act.
Sanjeewa previously served as chairman of the Beruwala Pradeshiya Sabha and as a provincial councillor.
What is not stated
Neither outlet names the operators that received the two permits, nor explains how the Rs. 4.16 million figure was calculated — whether it represents forgone permit fees, the value of the permits themselves, or some other measure. No charges have yet been formally filed, and no next court date was reported.
The two outlets also give the authority slightly different names: the Daily Mirror uses Western Province Road Passenger Transport Authority, which matches the statute, while Hiru drops “Road”. They refer to the same body.
Expressway bus permits have been a recurring subject of regulatory attention this year, most recently over seatbelt compliance requirements on expressway services.
