Third independent inquiry appointed into domestic match-fixing scandal

By Madushka Balasuriya 

Retired Supreme Court Judge Rohini Marasinghe has been called on by Sri Lanka Cricket to investigate allegations of match-fixing against Panadura Sports Club and Kalutara Physical Culture Club, in what will be the third such independent inquiry since the matter first came to light in January 2017.

The announcement comes amidst heavy media pressure into the fact that a previous ministerial inquiry, which had implicated SLC Executive Committee member Ravin Wickramaratne, among others, had been put on the back burner by SLC for the past four months. Wickramaratne, for his part, has vehemently denied the allegations.

As per an SLC release, Justice Marasinghe will “evaluate the reports of the inquiries conducted by the SLC appointed Panel of Inquiry led by Attorney-at-Law Asela Rekawa, and that of the Ministry of Sports conducted by PC Palitha Kumarasingha, as well as conduct her own inquiry and pronounce a final judgment as well as recommendations for punitive action against those found guilty”.

Incidentally, the calling for a fresh inquiry, while welcomed by all parties, comes at a critical period for SLC President Thilanga Sumathipala, with board elections set to take place on 31 May.

Previous inquiries 

The first inquiry established that match fixing had taken place, albeit not to the extent that money had exchanged hands, but for purely promotion/relegation purposes. On a final day in which 24 wickets had fallen and 603 runs scored in just 59 overs, umpires had flagged several unusual occurrences on the field of play. The end result had seen Panadura continue their march towards promotion to Tier A, while Kalutara, whose run rate had been boosted by the elevated scoring rate in the game, staved off relegation. 

As such, the panel of inquiry banned all the players involved for one year from all cricketing activities for their role - with Captains Chamara Silva and Manoj Deshapriya receiving two-year bans. However, upon receiving complaints from the two clubs, SLC commenced a formal appeals process and temporarily suspended the original punishments. 

It was during this appeals process that the second inquiry was conducted. This ministerial inquiry recommended that SLC hold an internal inquiry into the conduct of Wickramaratne, Umpires’ Committee member T. H. Wijewardene, and key office bearers at Kalutara and Panadura, in line with findings against them by an appeals committee. It also highlighted that, while SLC had fined both clubs to the tune of Rs. 500,000 and suspended their players, the governing body had also failed to impose any form of suspension on the clubs itself.