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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nSri Lanka\u2019s former first lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa, the wife of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa<\/a>, has been arrested over allegations of misusing LKR 10 million (approx 29.3 lakhs) linked to a charity she headed.The 73-year-old was arrested at her Colombo home on Wednesday by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC). She was later produced before a Colombo court, which ordered her to remain in custody until October 13 while investigations continue.<\/p>\n The investigation centres on Siriliya Saviya, a charitable organisation headed by Shiranthi Rajapaksa. Investigators allege that LKR 10 million obtained from the state-run National Savings Bank was meant to help provide a CT scanner to Colombo\u2019s Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children, but that the scanner was not supplied and the funds were instead misused.The case also involves former National Savings Bank chairman Pradeep Kariyawasam, who was arrested over allegations that the money was transferred to the Siriliya Saviya account without following proper procedures. He was later released on bail.There is a dispute over what happened to the money. Shiranthi Rajapaksa\u2019s lawyers told court that the funds remain in the Siriliya Saviya bank account and have not been misappropriated. Her defence also said the organisation had been trying to raise about LKR 160 million for the CT scanner.Sri Lankan officials have also pointed to the fact that a scanner had already been donated to the hospital by China, raising questions over the purpose of the funds collected for the equipment.Rajapaksa has denied wrongdoing.<\/p>\n Shiranthi Rajapaksa was Sri Lanka\u2019s first lady during her husband Mahinda Rajapaksa\u2019s presidency from 2005 to 2015. She was closely associated with Siriliya Saviya, which undertook charitable and welfare activities during her years as first lady.Mahinda Rajapaksa dominated Sri Lankan politics for years, serving as president from 2005 to 2015 and gaining popularity after government forces defeated the LTTE in 2009, ending the 26-year civil war. His family subsequently became a powerful political dynasty, with his brothers, sons and other relatives holding key positions.His popularity waned amid allegations of corruption and abuse of power, and he lost the presidency in 2015. The family returned to power in 2019 when his brother Gotabaya became president, but his government was eventually overwhelmed by an economic crisis that triggered mass protests in 2022 and forced him to resign and flee the country.<\/p>\n Sri Lanka\u2019s current president Anura Kumara Dissanayake came to power in 2024 on an anti-corruption platform and pledged to pursue cases involving alleged wrongdoing under previous governments.His government has since revived several investigations involving members of the Rajapaksa family.Shiranthi\u2019s arrest follows legal troubles involving her sons as well. Her eldest son, Namal Rajapaksa, a lawmaker and former minister, has been detained in a separate bribery case. Another son, Yoshitha Rajapaksa, was also arrested earlier this year on corruption-related allegations.<\/div>\n File photo: Prison officers escort Shiranthi Rajapaksa, the wife of Sri Lanka’s former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, to a prison vehicle outside a magistrate’s court in Colombo Sri Lanka\u2019s former first lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa, the wife of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, has been arrested over allegations of misusing LKR 10 million (approx 29.3 lakhs) linked to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":34052,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34051","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/sri-lanka-former-first-lady.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"File photo: Prison officers escort Shiranthi Rajapaksa, the wife of Sri Lanka’s former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, to a prison vehicle outside a magistrate’s court in Colombo Sri Lanka\u2019s former first lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa, the wife of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, has been arrested over allegations of misusing LKR 10 million (approx 29.3 lakhs) linked to […]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 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is the case against Shiranthi Rajapaksa?<\/b><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
Who is Shiranthi Rajapaksa?<\/b><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
Why are the Rajapaksas facing corruption cases now?<\/b><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"