Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court has found President Ranil Wickremesinghe guilty of “unlawful conduct” for delaying local elections by more than a year, a move seen as an attempt to avoid a referendum on his economic policies.
Despite the ruling, which was issued on August 22, there are no immediate legal consequences for Wickremesinghe due to his immunity as a sitting president.
However, the decision comes at a critical time, as the country’s presidential election is scheduled for September.
The five-judge bench unanimously ruled that Wickremesinghe violated constitutional rights by failing to release funds necessary for local government elections in March 2023.
The administration had claimed that the funds were needed for public servants’ salaries and pensions, despite a prior court order directing the release of money for the elections.
The court has now ordered the independent election commission to conduct the postponed local polls as soon as possible, without interfering with the upcoming presidential vote.
The delayed local elections were widely regarded as an unofficial referendum on Wickremesinghe’s handling of the economy, particularly following the controversial austerity measures he implemented to secure a $2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
These measures, which included doubling income taxes and removing energy subsidies, have been deeply unpopular.
Wickremesinghe, who became president in July 2022 after mass protests forced his predecessor, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, to resign, is now seeking re-election for a full five-year term.
He faces strong opposition, as the state of the economy is expected to be a central issue for voters.
The Supreme Court has also ordered the state to pay the legal fees of the four petitioners who challenged the postponement of the elections.
