• Claims he and his wife totally innocent and not guilty of any wrongdoing
• “We have been presumed guilty, the presumption of innocence is reversed,” says in letter dated 6 Oct.
• Appeals for appointment of independent investigator without delay to clear the duo

Embroiled in Pandora Papers’ alleged exposé, Thiru Nadesan yesterday wrote to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa requesting an independent probe.

Via a letter dated 6 October, Nadesan said that his name and that of his wife Nirupama Rajapaksa had been referred to as having various accounts/assets off-shore in Pandora Papers.

“It is commonly believed that all persons whose names have been so divulged are in some way guilty of wrongdoing,” the letter stated, adding that several world leaders, including Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, had publicly announced that they would investigate anyone whose names appeared in the Pandora Papers.

Having assured President Rajapaksa that he and his wife were “totally innocent and are not guilty” of any wrongdoings, Nadesan in his letter requested the President to appoint an independent investigator to, without delay, investigate this matter so that “my name and that of my wife” would be cleared. Nadesan has suggested the President could consider appointing a retired appellate court judge.

“I am making this request to Your Excellency because my wife and I have suffered heartache and pain of mind. We have been presumed guilty, the presumption of innocence is reversed,” the letter to the President by Nadesan added.

It could not be confirmed whether President Rajapaksa, who yesterday directed the Bribery Commission to probe the matter, did so following Nadesan’s request or not. 

Pandora Papers alleged that Nirupama and Thiru are the actual economic beneficiaries of an offshore company managed by a Singapore trust firm and used ill-gotten funds to purchase luxury residences in London and Sydney, Australia. Their unaccounted wealth was put at $ 161 million as per the Pandora Papers.

Their names and dealings were among 12 million documents and files exposed in the Pandora Papers detailing secret offshore affairs of 35 world leaders, including current and former presidents, prime ministers and heads of state.

The exposé follows an investigation led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) involving 600 journalists from 150 media outlets in 117 countries.

President orders Pandora Papers probe