Former President Maithripala Sirisena is under scrutiny for allegedly acquiring ten state properties using ‘Swarnabhumi’ title deeds issued during his presidency. This information surfaced through his asset declaration submitted to the Supreme Court.
The list of properties includes five that feature residential buildings. President’s lawyer Sanjeeva Jayawardena, representing victims of a recent attack, has questioned how a president could amass such assets. Jayawardena has urged the court to initiate an investigation into these claims, highlighting concerns of corruption.
In a related case, former Defense Ministry Secretary Hemasiri Fernando and former National Intelligence Chief Sisira Mendis have resolved their cases by paying the required compensation. Fernando was directed to pay 50 million rupees, while Mendis was ordered to pay 10 million rupees.
Contrarily, it was revealed that only 1.9 million rupees out of the 75 million rupees due from former Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara’s case has been paid. Similarly, only 4.1 million rupees has been paid out of the 75 million rupees owed by former State Intelligence Service Director Nilantha Jayawardena.
The court has rejected requests for extensions and ordered that all outstanding compensation be settled by August 30. Failure to meet this deadline will result in contempt of court charges against Maithripala Sirisena, Pujith Jayasundara, and Nilantha Jayawardena by September 20.
Senior Deputy Solicitor General Dilipa Peiris informed the court that a disciplinary inquiry led by retired Judge Champa Janaki Rajaratne is underway regarding Nilantha Jayawardena. However, the committee has faced challenges due to inadequate support from the National Police Commission and the Inspector General of Police.
