Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) has filed a petition in the Supreme Court alleging that former Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella and four others are in contempt of court for failing to pay the government the monies ordered by the Supreme Court in connection with the substandard drug procurement case.
The petition has been filed due to the failure to implement the orders issued by the Supreme Court in case SC/FR/65/2023, which concerned the procurement of substandard medicines. Accordingly, the Court has directed Transparency International to initiate contempt of court proceedings—under case number SC/Contempt/09/2026—against the former Minister of Health, the former Secretary to the Ministry of Health, the former Chairman and former Chief Executive Officer of the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA), and the former Director of the Medical Supplies Division.
In the relevant case, the Supreme Court had ordered former Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella to pay Rs. 75 million to the government, while ordering the other four respondents to pay Rs. 50 million each.
The Supreme Court observed in its judgment that the respondents had failed to establish the necessity for purchasing medicines on an emergency basis; the ruling further noted that the parties involved had knowingly violated procurement procedures when purchasing medicines from a private supplier. Accordingly, the Supreme Court held that the respondents had violated the fundamental right to equal protection of the law guaranteed by Article 12(1) of the Constitution.