Former minister Udaya Gammanpila told the Colombo High Court on Wednesday that fellow ex-minister Patali Champika Ranawaka had filed the original complaint against him “because of our political differences”, as he opened his evidence in a long-running case alleging he misappropriated shares belonging to an Australian businessman, NewsFirst reported.
The case, before High Court Judge Nadee Aparna Suwandurugoda, alleges that Gammanpila prepared a fraudulent power of attorney to take control of company shares worth approximately Rs. 20 million owned by Brian Shaddick, an Australian national. The prosecution case relies in part on a complaint originally lodged by Ranawaka during a period when both were senior figures in the now-defunct Jathika Hela Urumaya and its successor formations.
Gammanpila told the court that the complaint should be read in the context of his and Ranawaka’s later parting of political ways and accused his former ally of weaponising the criminal-justice system to neutralise a rival. He said the underlying business dealings with Shaddick had been documented and that he had no intention to defraud the businessman. The court has previously allowed multiple postponements of the case.
The hearing comes against a backdrop of multiple active criminal and accountability tracks involving Gammanpila, including the Police summons over the Kuliyapitiya statement on the Ranga Rajapaksha death and his media-rights petition over Suresh Sallay’s custody treatment. NewsFirst said the High Court would resume hearing further evidence on a future date.
Sources: NewsFirst — Gammanpila claims Patali filed complaint over political rivalry.
