A confidential committee report, appointed by the President to investigate allegations surrounding the release of cargo containers without mandatory scanning, was tabled in Parliament today (30) by Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Mujibur Rahuman.

Speaking in Parliament, Rahuman accused the government of deliberately withholding the report from the legislature and the public. He claimed that despite the committee having completed its work, the report was never officially presented to Parliament until he tabled it today.

Citing the findings of the report, Rahuman revealed that 37 out of 151 containers classified under the red label category — which mandates compulsory scanning due to risk categorisation — were released without undergoing any scan. He added that although the officials responsible for scanning had marked those specific 37 containers for inspection, no scanning had been carried out before their release.

Further, Rahuman highlighted that the report also reveals 103 containers that should have been scanned were similarly released without any examination.

He also pointed out a procedural irregularity, stating that while the official decision to release these containers was made on 18 January, two containers had already been released the previous day, 17 January, indicating possible premeditated violations.