Sri Lankan anti‑corruption authorities took into custody the former first lady, Shiranthi Rajapaksa, on Wednesday at her Colombo residence. The 73‑year‑old is being questioned in connection with allegations that a foundation linked to her diverted funds gathered for a children’s hospital scanner.
According to investigators, the Siriliya Saviya charity collected 10 cardinal rupees – equivalent to $30,300 or £22,800 – intended to purchase a specialised scanner for Colombo’s Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital. Officials contend that such a scanner had already been donated by the Chinese government, raising doubts about the necessity of the fundraising effort.
Shiranthi Rajapaksa has rejected any suggestion of wrongdoing, maintaining that the money remains untouched. She arrived back in Sri Lanka on Monday after receiving medical care in Singapore and had previously lodged a court petition seeking to block her arrest; that petition is scheduled for hearing on 12 October.
Manoj Gamage, spokesperson for her husband, former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, asserted that the funds are intact within Siriliya Saviya’s accounts and that no fraudulent activity has taken place.
Mahinda Rajapaksa governed Sri Lanka from 2005 to 2015, a period marked by the defeat of the Tamil Tiger insurgents in 2009. His family’s political influence endured for years, but a wave of public protests in 2022 over shortages of fuel, food and medicine precipitated the downfall of his brother, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was then president.
Since then, the administration led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has revived dormant corruption probes involving several Rajapaksa relatives. Earlier this year, the couple’s eldest son, Namal Rajapaksa, was detained on allegations tied to an aircraft procurement deal during his father’s tenure and remains in remand. His sibling, Yoshitha, also faced arrest on corruption charges in the same period.
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