The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka today ordered numerous former state officials, including former President Maithripala Sirisena, to present their assets and liabilities in response to a case over the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks.
The production of their assets and liabilities has also been mandated for former State Intelligence Service (SIS) Chief Nilantha Jayawardena, former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasundara, and former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando.
Before December 30, 2023, the Supreme Court ordered the former state officials to present their assets and liabilities in the form of affidavits.
The order was granted because the victims and their families of the Easter attacks have not received full compensation from the former state officials.
The group of former government officials was ordered by the Supreme Court in January 2023 to provide compensation to the victims of the Easter Sunday attacks in 2019.
The court issued the order as it rendered a decision in the lawsuit brought against Sirisena and multiple other parties for their alleged failure to stop the Easter attacks even though they had advance knowledge of the atrocities.
The victims of the Easter attacks were awarded compensation by the Supreme Court, with former President Sirisena sentenced to pay Rs. 100 million and former Secretary of Defence Hemasiri Fernando to pay Rs. 50 million.
Together with the orders to pay Rs. 75 million each to former SIS Director Nilantha Jayawardena and former Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara, the court also mandated that National Intelligence Chief Sisira Mendis compensate the victims with Rs. 10 million.
The seven-member panel led by Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya heard 12 petitions submitted by the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, the families of the attack victims, Catholic priests, and various other parties before rendering its decision.
