The appeal is being heard before a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena. The other members of the bench are Justices Shiran Gunaratne, Arjuna Obeysekara, Achala Wengappuli and Sampath Abeykoon.
The case was originally filed before the three-judge Permanent High Court Bench of the Colombo High Court during the period of the Yahapalana Government of Sri Lanka. Prosecutors alleged that the state incurred a loss of nearly Rs. 600 million through the importation of 14,000 carrom boards and 11,000 draughts (dam) boards via the state-owned retail chain Lanka Sathosa.
According to the indictment, the items were purchased using public funds and distributed to political offices linked to then presidential candidate Mahinda Rajapaksa during the 2015 presidential election campaign.
After hearing the case, the three-judge High Court bench found both defendants guilty of the charges. Mahindananda Aluthgamage was sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment, while Nalin Fernando received 25 years of rigorous imprisonment.
