Big breaking news is coming from Sri Lanka: preparations are underway to arrest Arjuna Ranatunga, the captain who led Sri Lanka to victory in the 1996 Cricket World Cup. This is all due to corruption allegations.
What is the whole case about?
Arjuna Ranatunga is accused of irregularities in awarding large oil purchase contracts when he was the Petroleum Minister. He and his brother allegedly changed the rules to allow for spot purchases, resulting in oil being bought at inflated prices. This caused a huge loss to the government.
The anti-corruption agency told the court that “The total loss to the state from 27 purchases is 800 million rupees.” This dates back to 2017.
Arjuna’s elder brother, Dhammika Ranatunga, who was the chairman of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation at the time, was arrested on Monday. He was later granted bail but a travel ban was imposed because he also holds US citizenship.
What will happen next?
Arjuna Ranatunga is currently abroad; he will be arrested upon his return. This case is part of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s major campaign against corruption. He came to power last year and promised to eradicate corruption.
Another of Arjuna’s brothers, Prasanna Ranatunga, was arrested last month in an insurance fraud case. He had previously received a two-year suspended sentence in another case.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for March 13. Such high-profile cases are becoming increasingly common in Sri Lanka.
Big breaking news is coming from Sri Lanka: preparations are underway to arrest Arjuna Ranatunga, the captain who led Sri Lanka to victory in the 1996 Cricket World Cup. This is all due to corruption allegations.
What is the whole case about?
Arjuna Ranatunga is accused of irregularities in awarding large oil purchase contracts when he was the Petroleum Minister.
He and his brother allegedly changed the rules to allow for spot purchases, resulting in oil being bought at inflated prices. This caused a huge loss to the government.
The anti-corruption agency told the court that “The total loss to the state from 27 purchases is 800 million rupees.” This dates back to 2017.
Arjuna’s elder brother, Dhammika Ranatunga, who was the chairman of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation at the time, was arrested on Monday.
He was later granted bail but a travel ban was imposed because he also holds US citizenship.
What will happen next?
Arjuna Ranatunga is currently abroad; he will be arrested upon his return.
This case is part of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s major campaign against corruption. He came to power last year and promised to eradicate corruption.
Another of Arjuna’s brothers, Prasanna Ranatunga, was arrested last month in an insurance fraud case. He had previously received a two-year suspended sentence in another case.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for March 13. Such high-profile cases are becoming increasingly common in Sri Lanka.
