Presidential Secretary’s companion to be summoned before COPE
Monday, 27 August 2012

The UNP has decided to request for the Speaker’s permission to summon Presidential Secretary, Lalith Weeratunge’s companion Indrani Sugathadasa before the COPE.

A young UNP parliamentarian has decided to ask for permission to summon Sugathadasa before COPE in order to question about several irregular transactions that have allegedly taken place during her tenure as the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Thilak Karunaratne, who recently resigned from the post of SEC Chairman, told the media that there is a mafia controlling the stock market that is engaged in corruption and that it resulted in the resignation of his predecessor, Sugathadasa.

The UNP has decided to also summon Karunaratne before COPE following the controversial statements made by him after resigning from the SEC.

Although Karunratne says that Sugathadasa was constantly under pressure from the stock market mafia, the UNP MP told us that she had supported several persons involved in the mafia and that she had used her office to get benefits for her companion, Lalith Weeratunge’s daughter and son in-law.

Apart from the SEC, Sugathadasa also hold the post of Chairman of the Sri Lanka Insurance Board.

While the SEC is assigned to regulate the Colombo Stock market, the Insurance Board has to regulate the insurance companies in the country.

At the time, Lalith Weeratunge’s daughter, Vindya Weeratunge and her husband Ajith Perera have worked at AVIVA-NDB Insurance. As soon as Sugathadasa took over as the head of the Insurance Board, AVIVA-NDB Insurance Company made Ajith Perera the head of marketing of the company. The company has therefore managed to get special privileges from the Insurance Board through Perera.

During this period, there was a controversy over Employees’ Trust Fund (ETF) monies being invested in Laugfs Company stocks. The ETF has brought the shares that were Rs. 10 a stock at Rs. 40.

UNP MP Dr. Harsha de Silva says that this transaction was one of the most serious transactions to have taken place like the NSB-TFC deal.

However, in order to prevent any inquiry into this irregular transaction, the head of Laugfs Company Head, Wegapitiya had made Vindya Weeratunge, a share holder of the Company.

Vindya Weeratunge was appointed as the Director and CEO of Laugfs Australia Higher Education Services (Pvt) Limited.

Sugathadasa had then taken steps to put aside any investigation into the irregular transaction where ETF monies were used to purchase Laugfs shares.

In this same manner, Sugathadasa is said to have taken steps to cover up investigations that were being carried out into other members in the stock market mafia like Dilith Jayaweera, Nimal Perera, Varuni Amunugama and her husband who have been engaged in many irregular transactions.

The young UNP MP said that since details are now being revealed that several members of the stock market mafia had received Sugathadasa’s assistance during her tenure as the SEC Chief and had provided special privileges to those related to her, she would be summoned before COPE for questioning.