Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sri Lanka’s former president and six-time prime minister, was arrested on August 22 by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). He was taken into custody after appearing before the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) regarding allegations of misusing government funds.

Authorities questioned him about a September 2023 visit to London, where he reportedly attended a ceremony at the University of Wolverhampton in honor of his wife. Wickremesinghe had been returning from Havana after attending a G77 summit when he stopped in the UK.

Officials accused him of using state resources for personal purposes. Wickremesinghe, however, denied the charge, insisting his wife had covered her own expenses. Despite being granted bail, his arrest marks a historic first—no other Sri Lankan ex-president has ever faced detention.

From Political Heights to Crisis Management

Wickremesinghe’s career spanned more than four decades. Born in 1949 into a powerful political family, he rose quickly through the United National Party (UNP). He entered Parliament in 1977 and became the youngest cabinet minister in the government of his cousin, J.R. Jayewardene.

Over the years, he held key ministries, gained recognition for economic reforms, and became prime minister multiple times, though he never completed a full term. In 1993, after President Ranasinghe Premadasa’s assassination, he became prime minister for the first time.

He also contested presidential elections but was defeated in both 1999 and 2005. After years in opposition, Wickremesinghe returned as prime minister in 2015 under President Maithripala Sirisena. Their alliance, however, was marked by conflict and even a constitutional crisis.

Role in the 2022 Crisis

By 2020, Wickremesinghe’s party had collapsed in parliamentary elections, reduced to just one seat. Many considered him politically finished. But he returned in 2021 as the UNP’s only MP.

In 2022, as Sri Lanka plunged into its worst economic crisis in decades, widespread protests forced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to resign and flee the country. Wickremesinghe stepped in as acting president and later won a parliamentary vote to secure the presidency.

Presidency and Downfall

As president, Wickremesinghe tried to stabilize the economy through IMF-backed reforms, debt restructuring, and privatization plans. His tough measures helped Sri Lanka recover from collapse but angered many citizens who faced austerity and hardship.

His decision to crack down on protesters, whom he once described as “fascists,” also deepened public resentment. In September 2024, he lost his re-election bid, winning only 17 percent of the vote. Anura Kumara Dissanayake, leader of the National People’s Power, won with 42 percent.

Wickremesinghe conceded gracefully, writing, “Mr President, here I handover to you with much love, the dear child called Sri Lanka, whom we both love very dearly.”

Since then, Wickremesinghe had largely stayed away from public life—until today’s arrest brought him back into the spotlight.