Colombo: Sri Lanka’s former president Mahinda Rajapaksa’s wife and son were questioned separately by police Tuesday in connection with two different cases, officials said.
The former first lady, Shiranthi Rajapaksa, was questioned in connection with a case filed in 2015 over alleged financial irregularities involving a foundation headed by her.
Namal Rajapaksa, an opposition legislator, was quizzed over his alleged links with underworld figure Kehelbaddara Padme, who was extradited from Dubai in mid-2025, officials said.
The mother-son duo were questioned by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for over four hours, police said.
Supporters of Namal’s Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party gathered outside the CID office to express solidarity with the Rajapaksa family during the questioning.
In a statement issued later, Namal said the questioning of him and his mother by the CID was part of a campaign of political victimisation by the ruling National People’s Power (NPP) government.
Namal is the eldest son of former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa, who had dominated Sri Lankan politics as president for a decade.
Namal alleged the government was targeting political opponents to divert attention from its failures.
“When a government fails to deliver on its promises to govern and fails the people, it tries to cover up those failures by targeting and victimising opponents. Lies, misinformation, corruption, and broken promises cannot be covered by attacking us,” he said.
Namal also thanked his supporters, saying their “presence, courage, and belief gave us strength when it mattered most”.
The questioning of the two high-profile members of the Rajapaksa family comes a week after the court proceedings against former president Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was arrested in August last year over alleged misuse of public funds and later released on bail.
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