• Double and excess payments to beneficiaries flagged
• The funds disbursed outside procedures
• Free Lawyers demand urgent Parliamentary probe
• Treasury, officials under scrutiny over irregularities

The Free Lawyers organisation, alleging that nearly Rs. 500 million in Aswesuma funds had been irregularly disbursed through double and excess payments to beneficiaries, called for an immediate Parliamentary inquiry into the incident.

In a letter addressed to Speaker of Parliament Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne, the organisation claimed yesterday (6) the payments had been made through the Welfare Benefits Board (WBB) outside established financial procedures and without proper oversight.

According to the letter, which was seen by The Daily Morning, close to 1.83 million families were due to receive Aswesuma benefits in April of this year (2026). However, a segment of beneficiaries had received payments twice, whereas others had been credited amounts exceeding the approved sum, including additional payments beyond the Government-approved bonus allowance.

The organisation added the funds in question, amounting to nearly Rs. 500 million, had been released by the Treasury and transferred to beneficiary accounts through the WBB. The letter, signed by President's Counsel Maithri Gunaratne, attorney Athula de Silva, and former Provincial Governor Rajitha Keerthi Tennakoon, read that the disbursement had taken place without adherence to institutional procedures, financial regulations, or proper checks and balances.

Citing Article 148 of the Constitution, which vests control over public finance in Parliament, the organisation called for urgent answers on several matters, including the number of families who received double or excess payments, and whether an inquiry had been initiated into reported cases in Districts such as Kegalle, Monaragala, and Kurunegala. 

The organisation also sought clarification on the total number of beneficiaries who received overpayments, the full value of the excess funds disbursed, and the officials responsible for authorising such payments outside the approved procedures. It also questioned whether those involved had been granted financial authority under the relevant regulations. 

In addition, it sought details on whether a formal investigation had been launched into the role of Treasury officials, and whether the incident was the result of a system failure, human error, or external interference such as a cyber attack.

The organisation also called for administrative control of the Treasury to be placed under an experienced senior official with the necessary independence.

At the same time, it urged the authorities to recover any excess payments in a manner that would not place an additional burden on low-income beneficiaries, recommending that repayments be arranged in installments.

Rural Development, Social Security, and Community Empowerment Minister, Wasantha Piyathissa was unavailable for comment.