Sri Lankan Ex-President’s Son Namal Rajapaksa Arrested in Probe Related to $2.3 Billion Airbus Deal
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Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Sri Lanka's anti-graft agency arrested lawmaker Namal Rajapaksa, the son of former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, on Friday over a controversial $2.3 billion Airbus deal involving alleged multi-million-dollar kickbacks.
The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) took the 40-year-old opposition MP into custody following questioning regarding the 2013 purchase of 10 aircraft. Officials confirmed Rajapaksa will appear before a magistrate shortly.
His defence lawyer, Nishantha Dayananda, confirmed the arrest, though formal charges remain undisclosed.
In a statement released by his administration following his remand until September 18, MP Namal Rajapaksa welcomed a fair, impartial, and transparent investigation into the allegations against him.
Questioning the timing of his arrest, Rajapaksa pointed out that it occurred just a day before a government rally marking two years in office and ahead of his own party's major political gathering on September 12. He suggested the public is well aware of the motives behind the timing, given that the government had been promising to recover misappropriated funds for years without concrete results.
Rajapaksa maintained that while political office is temporary, the rule of law must endure. He stated that he would face the legal proceedings calmly and without fear, while reserving his right to challenge all allegations through legal channels and continuing to serve the people who trusted him.
The Bribe Trail
The investigation focuses on allegations that European aerospace giant Airbus channelled illicit funds to senior Sri Lankan politicians to secure cabinet approval during Mahinda Rajapaksa’s tenure from 2005 to 2015.
Earlier court filings revealed former Sri Lankan Airlines chief executive Kapila Chandrasena told sleuths he handed nearly $500,000 in kickbacks directly to Namal Rajapaksa.
Chandrasena initially claimed paying 60 million Sri Lankan rupees across three installments in 2013, before later retracting his statement citing coercion.
Chandrasena was found dead at a relative’s residence in May, weeks before a scheduled rearrest. The cause of death remains unestablished.
Regional Geopolitics and Financial Collapse
A joint probe by British, American, and French authorities previously established that Airbus agreed to pay roughly $16 million in bribes within Sri Lanka, with $1.7 million routed to Chandrasena before the network collapsed.
The state-run carrier cancelled the Airbus order in 2016, but debt continues to cripple the airline. Accumulated losses now touch $2 billion, while repeated attempts by Colombo to privatise the national flag carrier have fallen through.
The Rajapaksa family denies all wrongdoing, maintaining the anti-graft drive is politically motivated. CIABOC questioned former President Mahinda Rajapaksa in May over related bribery claims.
