The Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) has filed a Court of Appeal petition seeking to block the government from recovering losses caused by importing substandard coal through electricity tariffs or tax revenue, the party announced on Thursday.
FSP Education Secretary Pubudu Jayagoda said the losses from low-grade coal — including diesel substitution, boiler damage, fuel waste and unquantified environmental costs — could exceed Rs. 20 billion. “The government is trying to impose this loss on the people, who are already burdened by the cost of living. That cannot be allowed,” he said.
The petition asks the court to issue a prohibitory order against charging the public for the loss, a mandamus order directing the recovery of losses from the importing company, politicians and officials involved, an interim order preventing electricity tariff hikes until the case concludes, and a writ order annulling the gazette notification on tariff increases.
Jayagoda accused both the government and the parliamentary opposition of trivialising the issue. “The opposition, which has no other opinion about the energy sector, has reduced this whole problem to mere theft. The government too is staging a drama, pretending to investigate since 2009, while in reality pickpocketing the people,” he said.
The FSP noted that reports on the losses had already been released by the Ceylon Electricity Board in February, the Public Utilities Commission in March, and the National Audit Commission in April, but no formal investigations were launched. The party described the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on coal procurement, appointed instead, as suspicious.
The petition is distinct from the earlier FSP challenge to the Trident–Taranjot coal tender, which contested the legality of the procurement itself. The new case targets cost-recovery, joining SJB calls before PUCSL urging that consumers not bear the loss and the parliamentary environmental subcommittee review of Norochcholai.
