Colombo Fort Acting Magistrate Kinsley Hettiarachchi on Wednesday adjourned the case against former President Ranil Wickremesinghe and former Presidential Secretary Saman Ekanayake to 9 December, again to allow the Attorney General’s advice on what action to take.
Both men appeared in court in person, and the Criminal Investigation Department appeared for the prosecution, Hiru News reported at 1.23 p.m. The Daily Mirror gives the same magistrate, the same date and the same reason, describing the allegation as the misuse of State funds.
The case concerns a September 2023 journey to London, presented as part of an official visit, during which Wickremesinghe attended a ceremony for his wife, Professor Maithree Wickremesinghe, at the University of Wolverhampton. Investigators treat it as a private trip charged to the public purse. Both men are on bail.
The figure, and a translation trap
Hiru’s Sinhala text puts the alleged loss at more than 166 lakhs of rupees — about Rs 16.6 million. That matches the Rs 16.6 million this desk reported in August.
Hiru’s own English headline on a companion filing renders the same figure as “Rs 1.66 billion”, which overstates it a hundredfold; the Sinhala word ලක්ෂ (lakh, 100,000) has been read as a far larger unit. Search summaries circulating on Wednesday also offered Rs 16.9 million. Neither figure is supported by the Sinhala text, and neither is used here.
Six months of waiting on one decision
The adjournment is the latest in a sequence that has turned on a single unmade decision — whether the Attorney General will file indictments.
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| 29 Apr 2026 | Court ordered indictments be filed promptly |
| 18 Aug 2026 | AG’s Department said the CID file was under review |
| 30 Sep 2026 | Case recalled for 11 November before Magistrate Pasan Amarasena |
| 11 Nov 2026 | Adjourned to 9 December, AG’s advice still awaited |
That is more than six months from a magistrate’s finding of sufficient evidence to Wednesday’s hearing, with the position of the Attorney General unresolved throughout. This desk reported on 30 September that the AG’s position was the central question; it still is.
Note also that the bench has changed: the September sitting was before Magistrate Pasan Amarasena, Wednesday’s before Acting Magistrate Kinsley Hettiarachchi. Neither filing explains why.
Not reported
Neither filing gives a case number, names counsel for either side, or reports anything said in court beyond the order. Neither says whether the Attorney General’s Department offered any explanation for the continued delay, whether the court set any condition or deadline for the advice to be produced, or whether the defence objected to a further adjournment. Nothing indicates what is left to decide after six months of review.
