Oct 23, Colombo: Sri Lanka's Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery and Corruption has filed a complaint against the former secretary of the Petroleum Ministry at the Colombo Magistrate Colombo today.

The Commission has charged former secretary of the Petroleum Ministry Titus Jayawardena and a Ceylon Petroleum Corporation official for under the Bribery Act.

The two officials have been charged with four counts on alleged corruption in importing of a substandard fuel stock from the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC).

Jayawardena, when he was Secretary to the Ministry of Petroleum Industries has signed off on a US$ 500 million order for the supply of Gas Oil from ENOC.

Jayawardena has issued the order to import the controversial stock in the absence of CPC Chairman Harry Jayawardena and Petroleum Minister Susil Premajayantha when they were on overseas tours. He had also allegedly directed the CPC to fill the storage tanks with the substandard fuel.

The use of substandard fuel distributed damaged thousands of vehicles throughout the country and the CPC was ordered to pay compensation to the owners.

A three-member committee appointed by the Petroleum Industries Minister Susil Premajayantha to probe the deal found that recommended procedures and guidelines had not been followed in importing the low quality fuel from ENOC.

The court has ordered to recommence sittings on the 22nd of January next year. The respondents were ordered to be present in courts on that day.