COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — A Sri Lankan court on Tuesday released the former president Ranil Wickremesinghe on bail after he was arrested over allegations of misusing public funds while in office.
Wickremesinghe, who was arrested Friday, is accused of using public funds to attend his wife’s graduation ceremony in London after an official visit to Cuba and the United States in 2023.
The senior opposition politician's aide Danushka Ramanayake said he had heard from the Magistrates’ Court in Colombo that
Wickremesinghe had been given bail. More details were not immediately available.
During the hearing, thousands of Wickremesinghe's supporters took to the streets to protest his arrest, calling it a political witch-hunt by the government of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
Some protesters in black clothes waved black flags and shouted slogans condemning the arrest and calling for his immediate release.
One protester, Samarasiri Kuruwitaarachchi, 69, said the government has failed to deliver the promises given to the people at the last year’s election and is now “trying to hunt down the political opponents.”
“We condemn the arrest of Wickremesinghe who has done so much for the country,” Kuruwitaarachchi said. “We gathered here to demand justice for him.”
After the hearing concluded, supporters of Wickremesinghe cheered and danced in the street.
Wickremesinghe’s arrest has been criticized by opposition lawmakers and politicians who claim it undermines the country’s democracy.
Transport and Highways Minister Bimal Rathnayake rejected the accusations against the government and said Wickremesinghe’s arrest was not a political revenge but in accordance with the country's law. He told local media Monday that the government has a mandate to probe the alleged malpractices of previous governments and that the law will be enforced equally.
Wickremesinghe is the first Sri Lankan former head of state to be arrested and the most prominent leader under investigation for corruption under Dissanayake, who came to power last year on an anti-corruption platform.
More than a dozen former high government officials and political leaders are under investigation for alleged wrongdoing.
Wickremesinghe’s party responded to the allegations by saying he attended the graduation ceremony on an invitation received in his official capacity.
The former president is currently in intensive care at the Colombo National Hospital and did not attend the court hearing, which he joined remotely.
Wickremesinghe was admitted to hospital on Saturday after experiencing dehydration and related health complications. Dr. Pradeep Wijesinghe, a director at the facility, told the media Monday that his condition has shown some stability.
Wickremesinghe, who came to power after Sri Lanka’s economic upheaval led to a political crisis that forced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to resign in 2022, has been credited with stabilizing the crumbling economy. Under his leadership, inflation fell, the local currency strengthened and foreign reserves increased. But he faced a public backlash over his government’s stringent austerity measures.
