Colombo: The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka found the Rajapakse brothers, including two former presidents, guilty of plunging Sri Lanka into a severe financial crisis. The court pointed out that the representatives who resigned and were expelled after the investigation violated the public trust.
A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court pronounced the verdict with a full majority on multiple petitions filed by academics and civil rights activists. The complaint was filed by corruption watchdog Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) and four other activists against the officials, including former presidents Gotabaya Rajapakse and Mahinda Rajapakse.
Rajapakse’s younger brother and former finance minister Basil Rajapakse, two former central bank governors and top treasury officials are implicated in the case, media reports said. Sri Lanka has been rocked by public protests for months, with an economic crisis and severe shortages of food, fuel and medicine. Following this, Gotabaya Rajapakse was overthrown in Sri Lanka.
A bench of the Supreme Court held the accused responsible for the financial misappropriation between 2019 and 2022. The court also ordered the petitioners to pay $458 (150,000 Sri Lankan Rupees) in legal costs.
Transparency International lawyer Nadishani Perera said that the destruction and mismanagement of the economy by heads of state and senior officials is an encroachment on people’s fundamental rights.
Transparency International said it approached the court in the public interest and that it would not seek money for costs. In addition, Transparency International pointed out in a statement that the court was lagging behind in redressing the loss suffered by the people.
Sri Lanka declared bankruptcy in 2022. As of September 2023, Sri Lanka is reported to have an external debt of $35.1 billion. Media reports that 19 percent of that debt is with China, 7 percent with Japan and 5 percent with India.
Media reported that Rajapaksa remains under Sri Lankan armed protection despite a court order to arrest and prosecute him on corruption charges.
Content Highlight: Severe economic crisis in Sri Lanka, the Supreme Court announced the verdict on the complaint
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2023-11-15 11:54:00
