Mahesh Gammanpila Further Remanded Until May 5 Over Fertilizer Fraud Allegations

COLOMBO (News 1st): Mahesh Gammanpila, the former Additional Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, has been remanded until May 5 after he was produced before Colombo Chief Magistrate Thanuja Lakmali this evening.

He was arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) over a controversial organic fertiliser import deal in 2021.

In 2021, he allegedly instructed officials to open already suspended letters of credit (LCs) for the importation of a substandard stock of organic fertilizer from a Chinese company.

This decision reportedly led to the government making a payment of around USD 6.9 million, equivalent to 75% of the cost of the initial fertilizer shipment, resulting in what authorities claim was an unjust financial loss to the state.

Bribery Commission officials, in their report to the court, asserted that the suspect had committed an act of corruption, and since the investigation is still ongoing, they requested that he be further remanded.