At least 14 court cases filed against members of the Rajapaksa family between 2015 and 2016 were previously withdrawn on technical grounds, along with at least 12 additional cases involving key members of their inner circle.
Yesterday, the Court of Appeal ordered the retrial of cases against former Minister Johnston Fernando that had been previously dismissed. In addition to the cases involving Johnston Fernando, cases previously filed against Rajapaksa loyalists Keheliya Rambukwella (3 cases), Rohitha Abeygunawardena, Priyankara Jayaratne, Dhammika Perera, and Nissanka Senadhipathi had also been withdrawn on similar technical grounds.
Regarding the Rajapaksa family, withdrawn cases included one assets case against Gotabaya Rajapaksa, one assets case against Mahinda Rajapaksa, five assets cases and one public property misuse case against Basil Rajapaksa, four assets cases against Namal Rajapaksa, as well as one assets case and one case related to the illegal enlistment into the Navy using public funds against Rohitha Rajapaksa.
Measures are currently underway to re-file these withdrawn cases, prompting frantic reactions and controversial statements from those involved.
