High-Profile Interrogation: The Gotabaya Rajapaksa Property Case

Former Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa was questioned by police regarding a property in Kataragama. The inquiry is part of ongoing anti-corruption efforts by the new government. Rajapaksa resigned in 2022 amid economic turmoil and fled Sri Lanka during protests before formally resigning from Singapore.

Former Sri Lankan president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, was interrogated by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) concerning a property in Kataragama, located in the southern part of the country, on Friday morning.

He is the most notable Rajapaksa family member to face police questioning since the new government took office under Anura Kumara Dissanayake in November. The questioning lasted nearly two hours as police recorded his statement related to the property.

The National People's Power (NPP) government, which came into power following last year's elections, had committed to reopening anti-corruption investigations dating back to 2015-2019 that involved the Rajapaksas. Gotabaya Rajapaksa stepped down from the presidency in July 2022, amid severe backlash for his management of the national crisis and the economic downfall caused by foreign exchange shortages.

(With inputs from agencies.)