The Ministry of Agriculture is to seek legal advice from the Attorney General's (AG) Department on recovering a deposit of Rs. 660 million made during the ‘Yahapalana (good governance)’ United National Front-led Government for leasing a private building in Rajagiriya to house the Ministry.

Speaking to the media yesterday (21), the Secretary to the Ministry, M.P.N.M. Wickramasinghe revealed that the deposit had not been returned or re-deposited to the Government, and that the Ministry had no records of what happened to the said money. "The Ministry has no information regarding the fate of the Rs. 660 million deposit," he said. Wickramasinghe explained that it is standard practice for public funds used in such transactions to be protected by a bank bond. However, in this case, no such bond was acquired. He added, "When public funds are deposited, the bank should issue a bond as a guarantee, which is the usual procedure. Unfortunately, this step was not followed in this instance."

He noted that due to the unresolved status of the deposit, the Ministry is to consult the AG's Department for guidance on potential legal actions to recover the amount.

The building in question, reportedly owned by a popular artiste, was leased to house the Ministry after the Yahapalana Government vacated the original building, the ‘Govijana Mandiraya’, to accommodate newly established Parliamentary Oversight Committees. Despite the lease, a Special Audit Report revealed that by the end of 2019, the building remained unused while the Government continued paying a substantial monthly rent of Rs. 21 million.