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Khavan Perera claims damages from Lalith Kotalawela
View(s):Khavan Michael Perera, former Deputy Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Golden Key Credit Card Company Limited (GKCCC) and Golden Key Group has filed legal action in the District Court of Colombo seeking Rs 5 billion in damages from former Chairman of Ceylinco Consolidated Lalith Kotalawela.
Mr Perera was among the Directors of GKCCC who had indictments filed against them in the Colombo High Court in 2011. Among the charges against them were criminal misappropriation and criminal breach of trust under the Penal Code.
The AG however, withdrew most charges against Mr Perera and the other accused on October 7, 2022, leading the Court to acquit and discharge them from those charges. He and the other accused pleaded guilty to two charges under the Finance Companies Act for operating a financial institution without a license from the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL).
In his plaint, Mr Perera states that Mr Kotalawela caused a “false and malicious” complaint to be made to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) against him on December 20, 2008, falsely accusing him of misappropriation of monies, giving instructions to misappropriate monies, incorrect reporting of data and information and mismanagement of funds. A case was then filed in the Mount Lavinia Magistrate’s Court on January 6, 2009 and after reporting to Court in response to summons, he was remanded.
After being released on bail on April 1, 2010, Mr Perera says he was shunned by the business community and society due to the allegations against him, and general misconceptions about his alleged role in the ostensible collapse of the Golden Key Group.
Though indictments were then filed against him in the High Court, Mr Perera argues that the charges against him were withdrawn due to the lack of credible evidence against him, thus demonstrating that the initial complaint made to the CID on Mr Kotalawela’s instructions, and the media campaign and public statements made by him against Mr Perera, were made with malice and without reasonable or probable cause.
He states that as a result of Mr Kotalawela’s “wrongful, unlawful and malicious conduct,” he was deprived of his source of income while in remand and thereafter, lost a significant portion of his personal assets, was unable to secure gainful employment and/or source of income due to the negative perception created amongst business and professional circles and is still perceived among many members of the public and business, professional and social circles as being responsible for the alleged loss of customers’ moneys.
Though he had sent a letter of demand to Mr Kotalawela through his attorneys demanding Rs 5 billion from him as compensation for the loss and damage suffered by him, Mr Perera states that the defendant has failed and neglected to pay the said sum, leading him to file a plaint in the District Court.
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