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Fact Check
A Newswire newscard of Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe saying that the 12 men who were given the death penalty in the Amarakeerthi Athukorala murder case are not affiliated with the NPP, and that they belong to the JVP and/or Frontline Socialist Party.
This claim is false. Abeysinghe has denied making such a statement and news outlet Newswire has called out the newscard as fake.
A social media post has been going viral recently, claiming that Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe of the current NPP Government denying NPP links to the 12 convicts who were given death penalty in the Amarakeerthi Athukorala murder case. The newscard also purportedly quotes Abeysinghe saying that they belong to the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and Frontline Socialist Party.
More instances of the claim on TikTok and Facebook can be seen here and here.
Upon investigation by the Newschecker team, the claim was found to be false.
On closely inspecting the viral newscard, we found that it carried the watermark of Newswire, a prominent TV channel in Sri Lanka and followed the same template used by Newswire on their website and social media. However, we could not find any evidence that the news outlet had posted any such newscard about Abeysinghe’s purported remarks.
2. The post was later shared by Abeysinghe on his verified Facebook account.
3. The post was also shared by journalist Azzam Ameen on his verified Facebook account, alerting people to the misinformation contained in the post.
On May 9, 2022 in Nittambuwa, Gampaha, during the citizens’ protests/Aragalaya against the former Government of Sri Lanka, MP Amarakeerthi Athukorala and his security officer were found murdered after a fight with an angry mob of protesters. Recognising the miscarriage of justice, the Attorney General filed indictments before the Gampaha High Court against 42 individuals in relation to the killings. On February 11, 2026, 12 suspects received the death penalty for their involvement while 4 received suspended sentences of 5 years, and 23 others were acquitted. Some social media users have speculated that the 2022 protests were organised by the NPP, though no evidence supports this claim.
The viral newscard claiming that Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe said the Amarakeerthi Athukorala murder convicts are not affiliated with the National People’s Power is fabricated. Both Newswire and Abeysinghe have publicly confirmed the newscard is fake.
FAQs
Q1. What does the graphic/newscard show?
A photo of Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe speaking to the press with these words in Sinhala at the bottom: “None of the 12 people who received the death penalty are from the Maalimaawa/NPP. They are from the JVP or the Frontline Socialist Party.
Q2. Did Abeysinghe make this statement?
No.
Q3. Did Newswire or any other news outlet in Sri Lanka claim that Abeysinghe made this statement?
No.
Our Sources
Facebook account of Newswire
Facebook account of Chathuranga Abeysinghe
Facebook account of Azzam Ameen
False
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June 3, 2026
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