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Following the suspicious death of former SriLankan Airlines executive Kapila Chandrasena, various speculations began circulating. Amidst this, a social media post claiming to be an official condolence statement from Member of Parliament Namal Rajapaksa sparked significant controversy. We conducted a fact-check to verify the authenticity of this claim; our findings are detailed below.
Social Media Posts :
A post claiming to be a statement issued by Namal Rajapaksa, bearing the logo of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, and expressing condolences and wishing eternal peace to the late Kapila Chandrasena, was circulated on social media as follows.
The relevant post had been further circulated across social media platforms.
Considering the requests received from our readers, we took steps to verify whether this post was genuinely issued by Namal Rajapaksa.
Fact Check :
Former Chief Executive Officer of SriLankan Airlines, Kapila Chandrasena, passed away on May 8, 2026, and his body was discovered at a residence located on Pedris Mawatha in Kollupitiya. Although the police suspect that he may have died by suicide through hanging, the matter was reported to the Fort Magistrate’s Court as a suspicious death and investigations were initiated accordingly. On May 9, 2026, Magistrate Pasan Amarasena conducted an on-site inspection, while a five-member medical panel at the National Hospital of Colombo was scheduled to carry out the post-mortem examination.
He and his wife were accused of accepting a bribe of US$2 million (out of a total promised amount of US$16.84 million) in connection with the 2013 aircraft procurement deal involving the purchase of Airbus aircraft for SriLankan Airlines. Based on these corruption allegations, he was first arrested in 2020 and re-arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption on March 12, 2026. After being remanded in custody for 54 days, Kapila Chandrasena was granted bail under strict conditions by the Colombo Magistrate’s Court on May 5. However, after it was revealed that the two bail guarantors presented on his behalf were fraudulent individuals, the court cancelled his bail and issued a warrant for his re-arrest on May 7, 2026. It was against this backdrop that his body was discovered on the morning of May 8, 2026. Further details regarding the incident can be found here, here, and here.
Amid the intense public discussion surrounding his death, a post circulated on social media claiming to be a statement by Member of Parliament Namal Rajapaksa, expressing condolences and wishing eternal peace for Kapila Chandrasena. We checked the official social media accounts of Namal Rajapaksa and the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, but the post was not found on any of them.
Fake Post
In a statement, the media unit of Namal Rajapaksa stated that the post in question was an edited and manipulated version, shared with the intention of creating public disapproval toward the Member of Parliament Namal Rajapaksa.
However, speaking to the media on May 9, 2026, Namal Rajapaksa stated that if suspects do not act according to the wishes of the government, police, the Criminal Investigation Department, and the Bribery Commission, they are allegedly subjected to pressure to the point where they may even take their own lives.
He further claimed that suspects are being pressured and “mentally destroyed” until statements desired by the police are obtained, and that various forms of influence are being exerted on them. He also said that pressure had been placed on the suspect to mention the names of “Mahinda and Namal Rajapaksa,” and noted that the individual in question has now died. He questioned who should be held responsible for this situation.
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Conclusion :
Our fact-check shows that the post circulating on social media, which claims to be a statement by Member of Parliament Namal Rajapaksa expressing condolences over the death of Kapila Chandrasena, is a fabricated post.
Title: Fake Namal Rajapaksa Condolence Post on Kapila Chandrasena’s Death
Fact Check By: BP Hansani
Result: False
