Former Sri Lankan president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, ex-prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, and other senior officials have been charged of fundamental rights violation, by the Sri Lankan supreme court.
They were held responsible for mismanagement of economy between 2019-22 and thus causing economic crisis. Including granting tax concessions and making poor financial choices (economic bankruptcy was declared by Sri Lanka in April 2022). As per the ruling the respondents were ordered by the court to pay the legal costs to petitioners.
The worst ever financial crisis in history hit the country, when foreign exchange reserves fell and there was a shortage of fuel, fertilisers and other essential commodities, filling people with rage and forcing them to come out of their houses to protest against the shortages.
Granting of tax concessions worth SLR 681 billion to various businesses by Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2019 is claimed to be the main reason of economic decline. Apart from this, other examples of mismanagement are claimed to be pegging of USD at Sri Lankan rupee 203, delay in approaching IMF for aid, and in January 2022 in the looming forex crisis, its decision to honour a USD 500 million international sovereign bond. Sri Lanka still has a foreign debt of 46.9 billion.
The case was filed by petitioners on grounds of fundamental rights violation. This was filed in public interest, with respect to bringing the ignorance to accountability and transparency by these senior officials to light. The petitioners requested the court to declare that this mishandling of economy has led to exploitation of people and victimised the entire country by leading to shortage of food, medicines and other essentials commodities.
Name- Nandini Jain, College- Lloyd school of law, A 1st semester legal journalism intern at Legal Vidhiya
Disclaimer: The materials provided herein are intended solely for informational purposes. Accessing or using the site or the materials does not establish an attorney-client relationship. The information presented on this site is not to be construed as legal or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon for such purposes or used as a substitute for advice from a licensed attorney in your state. Additionally, the viewpoint presented by the author is of a personal nature.
0 Comments