Saturday Aug 23, 2025
Saturday Aug 23, 2025
Saturday, 23 August 2025 00:34 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe was yesterday night remanded by the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court for four days until 26 August.
Wickremesinghe was arrested earlier in the day by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) after appearing before the sleuths to record a statement.
The arrest follows an investigation into allegations that Wickremesinghe used State funds for a private visit to London in September 2023 to attend a university ceremony with his wife, Prof. Maithree Wickremesinghe.
The trip coincided with his return from the Group of 77 (G77) Summit in Havana, but was not classified as an official engagement. Investigators allege that Government resources, including security, were misused.
Earlier, the CID questioned former Presidential Secretary Saman Ekanayake and former Private Secretary Sandra Perera in connection with the arrangements for the visit. It had also presented evidence before the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court in June.
Wickremesinghe, President from July 2022 to September 2024, has denied wrongdoing, stating that his wife bore her own expenses and no State funds were used.
This marks the first time a former President of Sri Lanka has been taken into custody and remanded.
Wickremesinghe is widely regarded as the architect behind Sri Lanka’s recovery from its worst economic crisis in history, which came soon after the COVID-19 pandemic, when Sri Lanka defaulted on its debts.
Proceedings on Wickremesinghe’s bail application at the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court were adjourned for half an hour and further delayed by another half hour due to a blackout.
