Finance Minister Ravi says to sue former President over Lankaputra Bank allegations

Sri Lankan Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake on Monday announced plans to sue former President Mahinda Rajapaksa over defamatory statements pertaining to Lankaputra Development Bank (LDB). He told reporters at a news briefing in Colombo that he has sent letter of demand to Mr. Rajapaksa, seeking Rs. 2 billion in damages. The minister said the former president had accused him of directing LDB to issue loans to known persons. He also told reporters that the ministry is separately investigating into financial misappropriation and irregularities at the LDB allegedly committed during the previous regime. He revealed that the bank has disbursed loans amounting to Rs. 1.6 billion in an irregular manner during that period and that the non-performing loans had increased in leaps and bounds. Some of these loans were given allegedly on the directions of former Treasury Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundera to cronies of the former president and the bank has found it difficult to recover the loans from defaulters who have produced forged deeds as collateral. LDB Chairman Lasantha Goonewardena told journalists that one of the defaulters had given a deed of a land belonging to a temple as collateral to obtain a massive loan. The bank will soon take legal action against loan defaulters after the completion of the investigations, he said. (Bandula)