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Basil and Nadesan acquitted in Malwana property case

03 Jun, 2022

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Former Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa and businessman Thirukumar Nadesan have been acquitted in the Malwana property case.

Basil Rajapaksa was accused of misappropriating Government funds to purchase the land. He is reported to have constructed a mansion on the land, with a swimming pool and a functioning farm.

However, the Gampaha High Court today acquitted Basil Rajapaksa and businessman Thirukumar Nadesan in the case.

The Pandora Papers, confidential documents obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, had revealed last year that as the country was ravaged by a bloody, decades-long civil war, Nirupama Rajapaksa and her husband Thirukumar Nadesan set up anonymous offshore trusts and shell companies to acquire artwork and luxury apartments and to store cash, securities and other assets in secret.

Pandora Papers revealed that the couple was able to amass and hide their fortune in secrecy jurisdictions with the assistance of financial services providers, lawyers and other whitecollar professionals who asked few questions about the source of their wealth ? even after Nadesan became a target of a well-publicised corruption investigation by Sri Lankan authorities.

However, in a letter to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Nadesan denied the allegations against him and his wife. (Colombo Gazette)

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