BC files corruption case over LECO land purchases

Former CJ Mohan Peiris, current CA Justice summoned

The Bribery Commission yesterday filed a corruption case in the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court against former Chief Justice and former Attorney General Mohan Peiris, former Solicitor General and current Court of Appeal Justice A.H.M.D. Navas and former Lanka Electricity Company Secretary M.M.C. Ferdinandes.

The case was filed against the three suspects for allegedly preparing a wrongful Attorney General’s opinion to avoid making a criminal investigation on irregularities and corruption reported in land purchases for LECO during the time period of December 1 to 30, 2010 when Mohan Peiris was the Attorney General.

According to the Bribery Commission it was revealed that the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) had earlier initiated an investigation into the alleged irregularities at the LECO (Lanka Electricity Company). But the Secretary of the LECO had then sought the opinion of the Attorney General over the need of a criminal investigation on the matter.

Later the Attorney General’s opinion received was that there was no need of a criminal investigation on the matter.the Bribery Commission said that the Attorney General’s opinion had wrongfully prevented the CID from continuing the investigation on the allegation at the LECO and CID earlier initiated a probe into the alleged irregularities at LECO but its Secretary sought the opinion of the AG certain people, who had allegedly been involved in the irregularities, from being charged in a criminal case.

The Bribery Commission also stated that there were two Committees (Siripala Jayalath Committee 2009 and Ratnapala Dias Committee 2010) which had also scrutinized the alleged irregularities in land purchases of LECO.

The Committees had also recommended criminal investigation on the matter but the Attorney General’s opinion had disregarded those committee recommendations and decided that there was no need of criminal investigation over the allegation, stated the Bribery Commission.

Bribery Commission filed charges against the three suspects under Section 70 (Corruption) of the Bribery Act and Sections 102 (abetment) and 113 (a) (Conspiracy) of the Penal Code.

Colombo Chief Magistrate Lal Ranasinghe Bandara noticed the suspects to appear in courts on March 8 over the case.