Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) Leader Udaya Gammanpila has claimed that the arrest of MP Namal Rajapaksa over the Airbus transaction is based on an unsubstantiated statement, despite the commission having been transferred to an account belonging to businessman Nimal Perera.
Addressing the media, Gammanpila said it was true that Airbus had transferred a commission to an account belonging to the wife of former SriLankan Airlines CEO Kapila Chandrasena. He said USD 800,000 from that payment was subsequently transferred to an account belonging to Australia-based businessman Nimal Perera.
According to Gammanpila, Perera had acknowledged that the USD 800,000 remained in his account and had not been transferred to another person. However, Perera had allegedly claimed that he gave Rajapaksa an equivalent amount of Rs. 100 million, while being unable to recall when or how the money was handed over.
Gammanpila questioned how such a large sum could have been transferred without bank records, telephone messages or other supporting evidence.
He accused the government of allowing the person who received the commission to remain in Australia while arresting Rajapaksa solely on the basis of an uncorroborated statement.
Gammanpila also referred to an allegation that Rs. 25 million from an account belonging to Chandrasena’s wife had been given to former State Minister Shasheendra Rajapaksa. He claimed that this allegation, too, was based on a verbal statement unsupported by documentary evidence.
The PHU Leader alleged that the government was attempting to weaken the opposition ahead of the 2029 Presidential Election by targeting prominent opposition politicians with fabricated charges.
Referring to German pastor Martin Niemöller’s well-known poem about remaining silent in the face of persecution, Gammanpila urged opposition parties not to remain silent over what he described as politically motivated arrests.
He rejected claims that the case against Namal Rajapaksa arose from an investigation initiated during former President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s administration, arguing that Rajapaksa’s name had not appeared in the initial investigation.
Gammanpila acknowledged that fraud had occurred in connection with the Airbus transaction and said those responsible should be investigated. However, he said his party opposed using the case to target opposition politicians instead of prosecuting those directly responsible.
“If there is concrete evidence, we will not defend Namal Rajapaksa even if 100 cases are filed against him,” he said.
He further noted that Kapila Chandrasena was initially arrested during the Gotabaya Rajapaksa administration, under the direction of then-Public Security Minister Chamal Rajapaksa, arguing that the former government had taken action over the alleged fraud despite the political connections involved.
