A Sri Lankan health minister who promoted 'magic potions' made by a 'sorcerer' as COVID cures has been replaced

• A Sri Lankan health minister publicly endorsed a "magic potion" as a cure for COVID-19.
• She later contracted COVID-19 and was hospitalized.
• The woman was removed from her position but will remain in the cabinet as transport minister.

Sri Lanka's president said on Monday that he had replaced a health minister who previously promoted potions and magic water as cures for COVID-19, reported AFP.

Pavithra Wanniarachchi had publicly endorsed a syrup made by self-described sorcerer Dhammika Bandara. Bandara claimed the recipe was given to him by the Hindu goddess Kali, the goddess of death and destruction, and promised drinkers permanent protection against COVID-19.

While doctors dismissed the cure, thousands still travelled to Bandara's home district of Kegalle for $13 bottles of the potion made of nutmeg and honey, reported Al Jazeera.

Traditional and herbal medicine is popular in Sri Lanka, and the country's Council of Indigenous Medicine fast-tracked approval of the treatment.

Pro-government media promoted Bandara's potion, and several politicians were photographed drinking the syrup, including Wanniarachchi and Women and Child Development Minister Piyal Nishantha de Silva, according to Nikkei Asia. Both Wanniarachchi and Nishantha de Silva later contracted COVID, and Wanniarachichi's case was severe enough that she ended up in intensive care.

Wanniarachchi was removed from her post by Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. She will remain in the cabinet as transport minister.

Sri Lanka is struggling to contain the latest surge in COVID-19 infections. To date, Sri Lanka has recorded 359,000 cases and 6,253 deaths. According to Johns Hopkins University, the country recorded a record high of more than 3,600 cases and 167 deaths on Monday.

Despite a surge in cases, the country has so far rejected a lockdown to contain the virus. But on Tuesday, it banned weddings and public gatherings, while restaurants are only allowed to operate with a 50% capacity, reported Sri Lanka's Daily News.