Sri Lanka's top court ruled on Tuesday (November 14) that former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother, former Prime Minister Mahinda, were among several government officials whose conduct contributed to the country's worst economic crisis in decades.
The court was ruling was on a petition filed against 13 former officials by rights group Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) which said the Rajapaksa brothers and others were responsible for the crisis.
The two Rajapaksa brothers, two former central bank governors and President Ranil Wickremesinghe were among those named in the landmark TISL petition. Wickremesinghe was prime minister at the time of the crisis.
Sri Lanka's economy collapsed as it shrank 7.8% last year, pummelled by long power cuts, soaring inflation, a plunging rupee and record high interest rates caused by the worst financial crisis in over seven decades.
(Reuters)
