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Former Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother Mahinda were held guilty by the nation’s Supreme Court for the financial crisis. (Image: Reuters)
Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his family members who clung to power for decades in Sri Lanka were held responsible for the economic crisis it is facing by the Supreme Court.
The Sri Lankan Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that ex-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother Mahinda were among 13 former leaders responsible for Sri Lanka’s worst-ever financial crisis.
The court ruled that their “actions, omissions and conduct” led to the economic crisis in Sri Lanka.
The decision was 4-1 split, the majority of the judges agreed that the leaders violated the fundamental rights of Sri Lankan by mishandling the economy. Former finance minister Basil Rajapaksa and two former governors of the Sri Lankan central bank were also held responsible for the economic crisis.
“Respondents cannot shirk responsibility by merely stating that the decisions they took were policy decisions. It was within full power of respondents to prevent such calamity as they had full knowledge,” Transparency International Sri Lanka said.
“It is clear that they did not act and take all measures to remedy the situation in the public interest,” they further added.
No penalty was imposed on the former president and his brother. The court instructed them to pay the petitioners’ legal fees. Sri Lankan news agencies said that the ruling may pave the path for other lawsuits. The case against Rajapaksa was filed by corruption watchdog Transparency International Sri Lanka and other activists.
Sri Lanka saw inflation surge as foreign reserves dried out and the nation ran out of fuel, food and medicine.
This led to protests that led to the fall of Gotabaya Rajapaksa. He also fled the country when public protests raged and people stormed his official residence, demanding that he answer the public regarding the state of the economy.
Gotabaya returned to Sri Lanka in September 2022 after a new government led by Ranil Wickremesinghe was formed backed by Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP). This new government started negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout.
Sri Lankans were left fuming when they experienced high levels of inflation that led to 13-hour power cuts, thousands queuing up for petrol and some had to even cut down on the number of meals to get by during that crucial period.
Sri Lanka is still fighting the worst effects of the crisis. It secured a $3 billion bailout from the IMF and has been told to meet the targets set by the international lender under the bailout agreement.
Sri Lanka has a total foreign debt of $46.9 billion and 52% of it is owed to China who is its largest lender.
(with inputs from BBC)
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