Former Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal was given a conditional discharge by the Colombo High Court following representations by his legal team to withdraw the indictment against him because there is no evidence to prove he had intentionally caused a financial loss to the Government by investing in Greek Treasury Bonds.
Earlier this week, the Colombo High Court gave permission to discharge Cabraal on condition he compensates the Sri Lanka Central Bank for losses it incurred by investing in the bonds.
The Court gave Cabraal three months to transfer a little over Rs. 1.8 billion to the CBSL’s account. He risks being indicted further if he violates the Court order.
Cabraal, who was the Governor of the Central Bank between 1 July 2006 to 8 January 2015, is accused of causing a loss of over Rs. 1.8 billion to the Sri Lanka Government by investing in the Bonds.
In representations made to the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery and Corruption (CIABOC) Cabraal’s lawyer said although his client’s participation in the decision to invest in Greek bonds cannot be denied, he did not have the requisite intent or knowledge to cause a wrongful or unlawful loss to the Government.
The representations emphasise the collective nature of the decision making that took place in the Central Bank with Cabraal’s lawyer stating, “his client acted based on the recommendations of his Deputy Governors and senior officers and there is no evidence whatsoever he acted arbitrarily.”
While highlighting that the CBSL’s documented records which point to overall yield profitability is a testimony to the bona fides of his client and the Monetary Board, the representations invoke the statutory protection for his client under the Monetary Law Act for acts done in good faith.
Meanwhile, in a statement issued on 10 December the CIABOC said it had agreed to withdraw the indictment against Cabraal, the first accused in the case, on condition he pays compensation of Rs. 1,843,267,595.65 to the Central Bank. The legal provision for this is s. 67 (3) of the Anti-Corruption Act 2023.
Cabraal and four other senior Central Bank officers were indicted in the High Court for conspiracy to commit the offence of corruption under Sri Lanka’s bribery legislation. Cabraal himself was individually indicted for the offence for his alleged role in investing in Greek Government bonds between 16.03. 2011 and 29,11,2012.
The CIABOC statement went on to say that steps will be taken to indict Cabraal further under s. 67 (5) of the Act if he fails to pay the compensation.
The indictment was withdrawn under s. 67 (1) of the Act.
The four other accused in the case were acquitted under the provisions of the Penal Code.
By Sarasi Wijeratne
(Source - ft.lk)
Leave your comments
Login to post a comment
Post comment as a guest