Fake Letter Viral As Hema Premadasa requesting a house in Colombo!

Following the passage of the President’s Entitlement (Repeal) Act in parliament, social media platforms were abuzz with discussions about former presidents. Hema Premadasa, the wife of the late former president Ranasinghe Premadasa, was also not spared—a forged letter claimed that she had requested a house to stay in Colombo. Let’s look at the claim first.

Social Media Posts :

A photo posted on Facebook, with the caption “Request from the mother of the current opposition leader (translated to English),” purportedly claimed that a letter had been sent to the President on the 11th, under the heading “Regarding the acquisition of a house in the Colombo area”.

The letter circulating on social media, claiming to have been sent to the President by former First Lady Hema Premadasa, states that with the passage of the President’s Entitlements (Repeal) Act, the widows of former presidents have also lost their rights.

As a result, Hema Premadasa, the wife of the late President Ranasinghe Premadasa, will also have to move out of her current home. The letter further states that Mrs Premadasa does not currently have any other house belonging to her or her family in the Colombo area or elsewhere.

The letter further states that she has requested the President to look into this matter and provide her with a suitable house to live in around Colombo.

Facebook | Archived Link

This letter was shared on WhatsApp as well.

Accordingly, steps were taken to verify the veracity of social media posts claiming that former First Lady Hema Premadasa had sent a letter to the President requesting a house.

Fact Check :

Under the President Entitlement (Repeal) Act No. 18 of 2025, which came into force on the 10th, former presidents and widows of former presidents lost many of the privileges they had been granted so far.

Accordingly, since the Executive Presidents of Sri Lanka, Mr J.R. Jayewardene and Mr D.B. Wijetunga and their widows, are no longer alive, Mrs Hema Premadasa, the wife of the late President Ranasinghe Premadasa, will also lose those official residences and other privileges under the new law.

Under such circumstances, the news of the loss of privileges to former presidents and their vacating their official residences had become a prominent news item in the mainstream media.

However, no media report was found indicating that the former First Lady had moved out of an official residence after the Act was passed or that she had sent a letter to the President requesting a house to live in.

Former presidents leave official residences.

Following the coming into force of the President Entitlement Repeal Act, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa left his official residence on Wijerama Mawatha in Colombo on the afternoon of the 11th and proceeded to Carlton House in Tangalle. In addition, the media had reported that it would take another few weeks for former President Chandrika Kumaratunga to leave the official residence due to medical reasons. It was also reported that former President Maithripala Sirisena had handed over the official residence to the government and left. Regarding the departure of former presidents from their official residences, the Derana news report stated that only former Presidents Mahinda Rajapaksa, Maithripala Sirisena and Chandrika Kumaratunga remained in the official residences. Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe have been staying in their private homes, while former First Lady Hema Premadasa has also been away from her official residence since last year.

Accordingly, we further investigated whether the media had reported that Mrs Hema Premadasa was enjoying the ownership of an official house under the President’s Entitlement Act. It was reported that the former First Lady, Mrs Hema Premadasa, had handed over the official home to the government in 2023. It was further noted that she had not used the house and that she had been residing in her private house. Several other news reports indicate that the former First Lady had previously given the official house she owned to the government, as seen here and here.

Accordingly, if she had left the official house since 2023, the article circulating on social media stating that she had requested an official house after the repeal of the Act becomes questionable.

Presidential Media Division

We also inquired from the Presidential Media Division about this, and they said that there is no information that the President had received such a letter so far.

Opposition Leader’s Media Unit

Accordingly, we have also inquired from the Opposition Leader’s Media Unit regarding whether the former First Lady of Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa, Mrs Hema Premadasa, has sent a letter to the President.

The Opposition Leader’s Media Unit stated that Mrs Hema Premadasa has not sent such a letter to the President and that the letter circulating on social media is a false letter that has been fabricated and released on social media.

Furthermore, the Opposition Leader’s Media Unit stated that Mrs Hema Premadasa lives in her private residence in Colombo and that she did not reside in the official residence that she owns. They further confirmed that the official residence that belonged to the former First Lady was handed over to the government again in 2023.

Presidents’ Entitlement (Repeal) Act, No. 18 of 2025

The Supreme Court’s decision on the President’s Entitlement (Repeal) Bill, which was presented before the Supreme Court, was announced to Parliament by Speaker Dr Jagath Wickramaratne on the 9^th. He informed that the Supreme Court had decided that the Bill was not inconsistent with any provision of the Constitution and could be passed by a majority vote in the Parliament.

Accordingly, the Presidents’ Entitlement (Repeal) Act was passed in Parliament on the 10th by a majority of 150 votes. On the same afternoon, with the assent of Speaker Dr Jagath Wickramaratne, the said Bill came into force as the Presidents’ Entitlement (Repeal) Act No. 18 of 2025.

Accordingly, any house provided or any monthly allowance paid to a former President or the widow of a former President under the provisions of Section 2 of the repealed Act; any monthly secretarial allowance and official transport and all other facilities paid to a former President or the widow of a former President under the provisions of Section 3 of the repealed Act, and any monthly pension paid to a widow of a former President under the provisions of Section 4 of the repealed Act stand abolished. You can view the Act here.

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Conclusion :

Our investigation of the facts reveals that the letter allegedly sent to the President by the former First Lady requesting a house to reside in is a forged and false letter. Furthermore, the former First Lady, Hema Premadasa, had handed over the official house she was entitled to the government back in 2023.