The Fundamental Rights (FR) petition filed by Minister Sunil Handunnetti, during his tenure in the opposition, seeking to recover Rs. 15.9 billion from those allegedly responsible for the 2020 sugar import fraud, was today fixed for support by the Supreme Court.
A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena, Justice Kumudini Wickremasinghe, and Justice Mahinda Samayawardhena scheduled the petition to be taken up for support on January 19, 2026.
The Court directed the petitioner to serve notices on the Minister of Finance and the Secretary to the Ministry of Finance regarding the case.
It was also brought to the Court’s attention that the caption of the petition needs to be amended due to recent changes in the designations of some respondents.
In his petition, Handunnetti seeks an order directing the Attorney General to recover Rs. 15.9 billion from the respondents and credit the amount to the Consolidated Fund.
The respondents named in the petition include former Finance Ministry Secretary S.R. Attygalle, Sri Lanka Standards Institution Chairman Nushad Perera, Pyramid Wilmar (Pvt) Ltd, its Director Sajath Mawzoon, former Presidential Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundara, the Chairman of the Consumer Affairs Authority, and the Attorney General.
