SC ruling on economic collapse: TISL expects Parliament to act

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Executive Director, Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL), Attorney-at-Law, Nadishani Perera yesterday (15) said that it would be the responsibility of the Parliament and relevant institutions to take appropriate actions in the wake of the landmark Supreme Court judgment pertaining to the unprecedented economic crisis.

Lawyer Perera said so in response to The Island query regarding the status of Sanjeeva Jayawardena, PC, and Dr. Ranee Jayamaha, both members of the Monetary Board who had served the body during the tenure of Prof. W.D. Lakshman (Dec 2019-Sept 2021) and Ajith Nivaard Cabraal (Sept 2021-March 2022) as the Governor of the Monetary Board.

The SC found fault with the Monetary Board for the economic crisis. Jayawardena and Jayamaha continued to serve the Monetary Board whereas Samantha Kumarasinghe was replaced in the wake of the political crisis triggered by the economic collapse.

TISL is one of the petitioners among those who filed FR cases heard before the five-judge bench of the apex court. Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya, PC, Justices Buwaneka Aluwihare, PC, Priyantha Jayawardana, PC, Vijith K. Malalgoda, PC, and Murdu N.B. Fernando, PC.

Lawyer Perera emphasized the need for a dialogue over the SC ruling. The SC faulted former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, former Finance Ministers Mahinda Rajapaksa and Basil Rajapaksa, former Presidential Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundera, former CBSL Governors Prof. W.D. Lakshman and Ajith Nivard Cabraal and former Treasury Secretary S.R. Attygalle et al.

The other petitioners were Dr. Athulasiri Kumara Samarakoon, Soosaiappu Neavis Morais, Dr. Mahim Mendis, Chandra Jayaratne, Julian Bolling and Jehan Canagaretna.

Even President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in his capacity as the Finance Minister, has been named as a respondent.

Petitioners asserted that a series of decisions taken during the relevant period, including the decisions to revise taxes, artificial control of the exchange rate, failure to maintain official reserves leading to their serious depletion, failure to seek the IMF’s intervention and the failure to make necessary adjustments to the interest rates caused the economic collapse.