Sri Lanka’s ex-first lady arrested over alleged misuse of children’s hospital donations

Sri Lanka's former first lady, Shiranthi Rajapaksa, has been arrested on Wednesday over allegations that a charity she presided over misused donations meant for a children's hospital in Colombo. The 73-year-old was apprehended at her residence in the capital city. She is currently being questioned regarding the 10 million rupees ($30,300; £22,800) collected by the Siriliya Saviya charity, which was intended to fund a specialized scanner for the Lady Ridgeway Children's Hospital.

However, officials claim that the hospital had already received a scanner from the Chinese government. Shiranthi Rajapaksa has vehemently denied any wrongdoing, asserting that the funds have not been appropriated. She had recently returned to Sri Lanka from Singapore, where she was receiving medical treatment. She had filed a court petition in an attempt to prevent her arrest, but the hearing was scheduled for October 12.

Mahinda Rajapaksa, Shiranthi's husband and the country's former president, stated that the money remains secure in Siriliya's accounts, and no fraud has taken place. Mahinda Rajapaksa, who served as Sri Lanka's president from 2005 to 2015, is currently facing several corruption allegations. His family has historically dominated Sri Lanka's political landscape, with his brother Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was serving as the leader when Sri Lanka ran out of fuel, food, and medicine in 2022, being eventually ousted from power.

The current Sri Lankan government, led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, has resumed investigations into corruption involving various members of the Rajapaksa family. Mahinda and Shiranthi's eldest son, Namal Rajapaksa, was arrested earlier this year over allegations connected to an aircraft procurement deal that took place during his father's presidency.

He is currently held in remand. The brother of Shiranthi and Mahinda, Yoshitha Rajapaksa, was also arrested earlier this year on corruption charges.