Ex PM Mahinda Rajapaksa Barred From Leaving Sri Lanka, Days After Brother Gotabaya Rajapaksa's Exit
NDTV
Gotabaya Rajapaksa has already left the country for the Maldives and onwards to Singapore; his 2 brothers can't leave, as per Supreme Court order
The Rajapaksa political family in Sri Lanka got further hemmed in today. After Gotabaya Rajapaksa's resignation as President of Sri Lanka was formally announced, the Supreme Court barred his two brothers — former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and former finance minister Basil Rajapaksa — from leaving the country. Gotabaya Rajapaksa had, however, managed to earlier this week, first for the Maldives, onwards to Singapore.
Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned as PM only two months ago, after his supporters attacked some people protesting outside his brother, the then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's office. The protests became more intense after that, and finally Gotabaya Rajapaksa had to leave the country and resign. His departure came after months of protests over mismanagement of the island nation's economy, leading to severe hardships for its 2.2 crore people.
"Gotabaya has legally resigned" with effect from yesterday, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana told reporters today.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has been sworn in as acting president.
