The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka has scheduled a hearing for 13 November to examine a fundamental rights petition seeking an order to recover compensation allegedly paid illegally by the government to former ministers for damage to their properties during the May 9, 2022 unrest.
The petition, filed by lawyer and social activist Dr Ravindranath Dabare, calls on the court to direct the government to recover the Rs 1.22 billion reportedly paid to 43 former ministers and MPs, whose homes and properties were damaged following the attack on the “GotaGoGama” protest site at Galle Face.
The case was called before a Supreme Court bench comprising Justices Mahinda Samayawardhena and Sobhitha Rajakaruna.
The petition names 15 respondents, including former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, former Defence Secretary Retired Major General Kamal Gunaratne, former Chief of Defence Staff Shavendra Silva, former IGP Chandana Wickramaratne, former Public Security Ministers Tiran Alles and Prasanna Ranatunga, current Acting IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon, current Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala, and the Attorney General.
According to the petitioner, Minister Nalinda Jayatissa revealed in Parliament on 5 February 2024 that the previous government had disbursed Rs 1.22 billion in compensation. Dr Dabare claims these payments were made without proper legal procedure and constitute a misuse of public funds.
He further argued that under normal circumstances, including natural disasters, the maximum compensation an individual is eligible to receive is Rs 2.5 million, and any payment exceeding this limit without proper assessment or legal basis is unjustified.
Dr Dabare contends that this conduct has violated fundamental human rights, and requested the court to issue an order for the recovery of these funds and to ensure that any future compensation is made only after a fair and lawful valuation process.
The court has ordered that written submissions related to the case be filed by 25 August, before it decides whether to grant leave to proceed with the petition and issue interim relief.
