Appeal Court upholds Four-Year Jail Term for Ex-Deputy Minister

• The High Court sentenced the former Minister to four years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs.10,000

by Lakmal Sooriyagoda  
The Court of Appeal yesterday upheld the four-year rigorous imprisonment sentence imposed by the Colombo High Court on former Deputy Minister Shantha Premaratne for soliciting and accepting a bribe in 2007.  

 While affirming the High Court’s conviction and sentence, the two-judge bench of the Court of Appeal, comprising Justices Sampath Abayakoon and P. Kumararatnam, observed that the prosecution had proven the charges in the indictment against the appellant beyond a reasonable doubt.  
The Bribery Commission had filed an indictment against Shantha Premaratne for soliciting and accepting a gratification of Rs.50,000 from an individual named G. Punchi Nona as a reward for securing a government job for her son, preferably in the Ceylon Electricity Board, between December 1, 2007, and December 26, 2007, in Ampara. The High Court sentenced the former Minister to four years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs.10,000.