Arrest of Ex- President -- Not the result of our vindictive political culture?

In January 2015 when the Yahapalanaya government was elected to power, the majority Sri Lankans had fresh hopes for an era of democratic values and the rule of law.

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This was especially after a decade of unmitigated power enjoyed by Mahinda Rajapaksa, overriding allegations of corruption due to his huge popularity after the ending of three-decades-long civil war in 2009. The Yahapalanaya government was established in 2015 under President Maithripala Sirisena, who was thought to be a humble and simple leader from rural Polonnaruwa. The head of his Cabinet and Prime Minister was Ranil Wickremesinghe.

One of the key pledges of Yahapalanaya government was to 'arrest' and punish those who plundered the country and there followed a series of the investigations, arrests, magisterial inquires and trials. However, having gone through long court proceedings, most of the cases proved baseless.

But it was revealed that the then PM Wickremesinghe had indicated to the law enforcement authorities including the Attorney General's Department that the state institution should not be used for political witch-hunts and allegations without proper evidence, and such cases should be handled with care.