MR fights to reinstate security detail amid Govt. cutbacks

Saturday, 25 January 2025 01:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s legal team yesterday filed a Fundamental Rights (FR) petition before the Supreme Court, seeking the reinstatement of security personnel removed from his security detail.

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya and other members of the Cabinet of Ministers have been names as respondents in the case.

The petition challenges the Government decision to reduce his security and requests a Court order to restore the original arrangement.

This legal move follows the Government’s decision to scale back the privileges provided to former heads of state, citing concerns over excessive State expenditure. Under the revised guidelines, the security allocation for former presidents has been capped at 60 officers.

According to the Presidents Entitlements Act No. 4 of 1986, the Office of the President oversees the provisions extended to former President Rajapaksa. Despite these entitlements, the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Public Security currently manage his security detail.

As of November 2024, his security team comprised 180 Police officers, including 29 drivers, in addition to active-duty personnel from the Army and Navy.

On 13 December 2024, Sri Lanka Police Headquarters, in a special statement, revealed that an annual expenditure of Rs. 1.1 billion has been incurred to provide security for former Presidents and out of this the largest share was allocated for the security of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, amounting to over Rs. 326 million annually.

The statement further outlined that the Government has decided to limit the number of police officers assigned for the security of former presidents to 60. This number will be reviewed periodically by a designated committee, which will adjust the allocation of security personnel based on necessity.