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As Sri Lanka’s local government campaign heats up, Meenu Gunasinghe, a young political activist of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), has become the target of a wave of doctored social media posts. Here are the posts that carried the claims, and what our fact-check found.
Social Media Posts
A post circulated on social media claiming that SLPP youth activist Meenu Gunasinghe had said former President R. Premadasa barbecued (BBQ) Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) members alive, and that once Namal Rajapaksa becomes President, they would serve them ambul thiyal (sour fish curry). The post spread in the form shown below.
Facebook | Archived Link | Facebook | Facebook | Facebook
Fact Check
Meenu Gunasinghe is a young political activist affiliated with the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and a regular, vocal speaker at the party’s public rallies.
We investigated whether she had ever said that R. Premadasa burned JVP members alive, or that they would serve ambul thiyal once Namal Rajapaksa became President. We found no media report and no video of her making any such statement.
The Photo Was Taken at an SLPP Rally in Kalutara
The photo of Meenu Gunasinghe used in the post was taken on 23 August 2026 at a public meeting for the Matugama and Kalutara seats in the Kalutara District, part of the SLPP’s series of local government constituency rallies.
We also reviewed her actual remarks at that Kalutara rally and found nothing resembling the statement attributed to her in the post.
Meenu Gunasinghe Denied Making the Statement
We contacted Meenu Gunasinghe directly. She said she had never made the statement described in the social media post.
She also confirmed this in a note on her own Facebook page, stating that she made no such remarks and that she would pursue legal action over these distorted posts spreading online.
How Fabrication Was Built from a Real Remark
A few days earlier, at an SLPP public rally, Meenu Gunasinghe had in fact used the phrase “ambul thiyal” (sour curry) in a remark of her own.
Her Actual Words at the Rally
“Even on the way here we talked about how we would have got here at all if the highway had not been built. Yes, as the NPP government’s people say, the highway was built to bring us ambul thiyal. Well, we brought you ambul thiyal. And remember this at the next election: we will serve a proper ambul thiyal. Keep it firmly in mind that we will not stop until we win this fight.
It is clear that this genuine remark, in which she used the phrase “ambul thiyal,” was twisted to construct the fabricated statement now circulating on social media.
Social Media Posts
A second post circulated on social media claiming Meenu Gunasinghe had said: “Basil’s brain, Gota’s fearlessness and Mahinda’s leadership are all combined within Namal.” It spread in the form shown below.
Facebook | Archived Link | Facebook | Instagram
Fact Check
The post was designed to look like Hiru TV’s official news format, so we checked whether Hiru TV had actually reported it. We found no such news report from Hiru Media.
We also checked whether Meenu Gunasinghe had made a similar statement on any other occasion and found no instance of her making such a remark.
The Photo Came from a Kurunegala SLPP Rally
We identified the occasion at which Meenu Gunasinghe appears in the photo used in the post. The footage was from a public meeting for the Bingiriya and Kuliyapitiya seats in the Kurunegala District on 22 August 2026, part of the SLPP’s series of local government constituency rallies.
Hiru TV Reported Her Genuine Remarks, Which Were Different
Hiru TV did report the actual statement she made while addressing that rally, quoting her as saying: “The JVP cadre, who once borrowed even their underwear from others, now come to teach us how to run the country.” At no point in that statement does she make the claim attributed to her in the social media post.
It is therefore clear that this post was created by distorting Hiru TV’s genuine report of the actual statement she made at the rally.
Meenu Gunasinghe Denied This Statement Too
We contacted Meenu Gunasinghe directly, and she confirmed she had never made such a statement. She has also addressed the recurring pattern of her words being distorted and misrepresented online in a social media note, available here.
Also Read: Was this a statement made by Meenu Gunasinghe about Nanda Malini?
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Conclusion
Our fact-check finds that the social media posts presented as statements by SLPP youth activist Meenu Gunasinghe are false. Both posts were built by twisting remarks she genuinely made at SLPP local government rallies, one in Kalutara on 23 August 2026 and one in Kurunegala on 22 August 2026.
No media report or video supports the fabricated quotes. Meenu Gunasinghe herself denied making the statements, both to Fact Crescendo and in notes on her own Facebook page, where she said she would take legal action. Hiru TV’s own report confirms that her real remarks in Kurunegala were different from the version put into the doctored screenshot built to imitate the channel’s news format.
The claim is therefore rated False.
Title: Viral Meenu Gunasinghe Statements Are Fabricated; SLPP Youth Activist Never Made These Remarks
Fact Check By: B.P. Hansani
Result: False
