(LANKAPUVATH | COLOMBO) – MPs Basil Rajapaksa and Thiru Nadesan have been acquitted of the Malwana case and released.
Gampaha High Court Judge Nimal Ranaweera has ordered the acquittal and release of the two accused in the case filed against former minister Basil Rajapaksa and his cousin-in-law Thirukumar Nadesan.
Former Minister Basil Rajapaksa and businessman Thirukumar Nadesan were present in the Gampaha High Court when the verdict was announced.
The Attorney General has filed three indictments against the accused on charges of embezzling government funds by purchasing a 16 acre land in the Malwana Mapitigama area in Dompe, constructing a large house and a swimming pool and running a farm.
Thirukumar Nadesan is the husband of Nirupama Rajapaksa, a Rajapaksa cousin.
When the case was taken up on March 25, 2022, the first witness in the case, contractor Upul Kumara Ramawickrema, testified that he had not made a statement to the Police Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) and that the signature on the statement could not be accepted.
Deputy Solicitor General Sunil Kularatne, who is prosecuting the case, told the Gampaha High Court that the witness had made such a statement and that no evidence would be heard in the case against Basil Rajapaksa and Thirukumar Nadesan.
The Gampaha High Court decided not to proceed with the case as the prosecution had failed to prove the indictment beyond a reasonable doubt and ordered the two accused to be acquitted of all three charges.
