Singapore rejected Wednesday<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/sri-lanka-president-maithripala-sirisena-relents-on-war-crimes-probe-203169"> Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena</a>'s allegation it was sheltering a former central bank chief wanted for fraud, saying Colombo failed to provide documents to support its extradition request.

Sirisena on Monday accused Singapore of sheltering Arjuna Mahendran, one of his country's former central bank chiefs wanted in connection with a high-profile $74 million insider trading scam.

Sirisena said he appealed to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in January to return Mahendran, who is believed to be in Singapore, but claimed nothing had been done.

Mahendran, a Singapore national of Sri Lankan origin, was accused in 2015 of passing sensitive information to his bond-dealer son-in-law to make millions.

The pair are accused of manipulating bond auctions in 2015 and 2016, causing losses of over $11 million to the state.

A spokesperson for Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said authorities in the city-state have been cooperating with their Sri Lankan counterparts on the case since January.

However, Sri Lanka's request to return Mahendran "lacked certain information required under Singapore’s extradition laws" and the city-state has requested Colombo to provide them, the spokesperson told AFP.

"To date, Singapore has not yet received the requested supporting information and documents," the spokesperson said.

"We look forward to receiving the requested information from Sri Lanka, so that we can consider the request further in accordance with our laws."

Singapore can extradite fugitives to declared Commonwealth countries, which include Sri Lanka.

In February last year, Mahendran was named a key suspect in the multi-million dollar bond scam in Sri Lanka. He fled abroad, failing to appear in court to respond to charges.

A damning presidential report into the scandal accused Mahendran of insider trading and recommended the state recover its losses from Mahendran and his son-in-law.

Sri Lanka's central bank also launched a forensic audit to ascertain the extent of insider trading during Mahendran's tenure at the bank.

The fallout deepened acrimony between Sirisena and his coalition partner Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who handpicked Mahendran to head the central bank in 2015.

The pair's strained relationship collapsed entirely in late 2018, when Sirisena sacked Wickremesinghe, plunging the country into political chaos as both men competed for power.

Wickremesinghe was reappointed after months of limbo when the Supreme Court intervened and ruled that Sirisena had acted outside the constitution by dismissing the prime minister and parliament.

Singapore rejected Wednesday Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena's allegation it was sheltering a former central bank chief wanted for fraud, saying Colombo failed to provide documents to support its extradition request.

Singapore rejected Wednesday Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena's allegation it was sheltering a former central bank chief wanted for fraud, saying Colombo failed to provide documents to support its extradition request. Sirisena on Monday accused Singapore of sheltering Arjuna Mahendran, one of his country's former central bank chiefs wanted in connection with a high-profile $74 million insider trading scam. Sirisena said he appealed to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in January to return Mahendran, who is believed to be in Singapore, but claimed nothing had been done. Mahendran, a Singapore national of Sri Lankan origin, was accused in 2015 of passing sensitive information to his bond-dealer son-in-law to make millions. The pair are accused of manipulating bond auctions in 2015 and 2016, causing losses of over $11 million to the state. A spokesperson for Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said authorities in the city-state have been cooperating with their Sri Lankan counterparts on the case since January. However, Sri Lanka's request to return Mahendran "lacked certain information required under Singapore’s extradition laws" and the city-state has requested Colombo to provide them, the spokesperson told AFP. "To date, Singapore has not yet received the requested supporting information and documents," the spokesperson said. "We look forward to receiving the requested information from Sri Lanka, so that we can consider the request further in accordance with our laws." Singapore can extradite fugitives to declared Commonwealth countries, which include Sri Lanka. In February last year, Mahendran was named a key suspect in the multi-million dollar bond scam in Sri Lanka. He fled abroad, failing to appear in court to respond to charges. A damning presidential report into the scandal accused Mahendran of insider trading and recommended the state recover its losses from Mahendran and his son-in-law. Sri Lanka's central bank also launched a forensic audit to ascertain the extent of insider trading during Mahendran's tenure at the bank. The fallout deepened acrimony between Sirisena and his coalition partner Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who handpicked Mahendran to head the central bank in 2015. The pair's strained relationship collapsed entirely in late 2018, when Sirisena sacked Wickremesinghe, plunging the country into political chaos as both men competed for power. Wickremesinghe was reappointed after months of limbo when the Supreme Court intervened and ruled that Sirisena had acted outside the constitution by dismissing the prime minister and parliament.

Singapore rejects Sri Lankan President's allegation on trading scam suspect

The new head of Sri Lanka&#39;s central bank Indrajit Coomaraswamy pledged on Monday to uphold its credibility after allegations of insider dealing that forced his predecessor to leave. 
 
Sri Lanka&#39;s president bowed to pressure to replace Arjuna Mahendran after he was accused of leaking information to his son-in-law&#39;s firm, which allegedly made millions of dollars in profits from central bank bond auctions. 
 
The scandal came with Sri Lanka&#39;s economy under stress -- last month the country began receiving a $1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund. 
 
On Monday Coomaraswamy told staff the bank was &quot;one of the great institutions in this country&quot;. 
 
&quot;I am acutely aware that a primary responsibility, arguably the primary responsibility of the governor, is to uphold this reputation and credibility,&quot; said the 66-year-old former director of economic affairs at the Commonwealth Secretariat, an intergovernmental agency of&nbsp;Commonwealth countries in London. 
 
&quot;I can assure you that I will do my utmost to do so at all times.&quot; 
 
Mahendran, a Singaporean national of Sri Lankan origin, has consistently maintained his innocence and had indicated he wanted to stay on after his term expired on June 30. 
 
But a group of Sri Lankan academics and professionals had gone to court to demand action against him and the government decided not to keep him on. 
 
The new bank chief also promised to work independently following allegations that the office of the governor had become politicised in recent years. 
 
&quot;When I met the president he just told me one thing - &#39;Do your work in a straight way and do not fear anybody in discharging your duties&#39;. My intention is to follow his direction,&quot; Coomaraswamy told his staff. 
 
He said he wanted to ensure strong macro economic fundamentals to win the confidence of people both in and outside the country. 
 
(AFP)

'I can assure you that I will do my utmost to do so at all times,' the chief said

The new head of Sri Lanka's central bank Indrajit Coomaraswamy pledged on Monday to uphold its credibility after allegations of insider dealing that forced his predecessor to leave. Sri Lanka's president bowed to pressure to replace Arjuna Mahendran after he was accused of leaking information to his son-in-law's firm, which allegedly made millions of dollars in profits from central bank bond auctions. The scandal came with Sri Lanka's economy under stress -- last month the country began receiving a $1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund. On Monday Coomaraswamy told staff the bank was "one of the great institutions in this country". "I am acutely aware that a primary responsibility, arguably the primary responsibility of the governor, is to uphold this reputation and credibility," said the 66-year-old former director of economic affairs at the Commonwealth Secretariat, an intergovernmental agency of Commonwealth countries in London. "I can assure you that I will do my utmost to do so at all times." Mahendran, a Singaporean national of Sri Lankan origin, has consistently maintained his innocence and had indicated he wanted to stay on after his term expired on June 30. But a group of Sri Lankan academics and professionals had gone to court to demand action against him and the government decided not to keep him on. The new bank chief also promised to work independently following allegations that the office of the governor had become politicised in recent years. "When I met the president he just told me one thing - 'Do your work in a straight way and do not fear anybody in discharging your duties'. My intention is to follow his direction," Coomaraswamy told his staff. He said he wanted to ensure strong macro economic fundamentals to win the confidence of people both in and outside the country. (AFP)

Sri Lanka's new central bank chief to 'uphold credibility'

Sri Lanka&#39;s president on Saturday bowed to pressure from activists and replaced the country&#39;s controversial central bank chief, appointing a respected economist to the top job. 
 
President Maithripala Sirisena announced that Indrajit Coomaraswamy, 66, had been appointed as the new governor of the central bank, effective immediately. 
 
Coomaraswamy was previously a director of economic affairs at the Commonwealth Secretariat, an inter-governmental agency of Commonwealth countries in London. 
 
&quot;After consulting all parties concerned, I appointed top economist Dr Indrajit Coomaraswamy to lead the Central Bank of Sri Lanka,&quot; the president posted on Twitter. 
 
The announcement ended any prospect of outgoing governor Arjuna Mahendran being reappointed after his tenure ended on Thursday. He had indicated he was prepared to complete another term. 
 
Sirisena had come under intense pressure not to reappoint Mahendran, who had faced allegations of insider trading. 
 
A group of Sri Lankan academics and professionals had gone to court to demand action against Mahendran, a Singapore national of Sri Lankan origin. 
 
Activists had threatened to take to the streets unless the president replaced him. 
 
He was accused last year of leaking inside information to his son-in-law&#39;s firm, allegedly allowing it to make millions of dollars in profits from a central bank bond auction. 
 
Mahendran has consistently maintained his innocence. 
 
Sri Lanka&#39;s economy is under stress and last month began receiving the first tranche of a $1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp; 
 
 
&nbsp;

Activists had threatened to take to the streets unless the President replaced Arjuna Mahendran

Sri Lanka's president on Saturday bowed to pressure from activists and replaced the country's controversial central bank chief, appointing a respected economist to the top job. President Maithripala Sirisena announced that Indrajit Coomaraswamy, 66, had been appointed as the new governor of the central bank, effective immediately. Coomaraswamy was previously a director of economic affairs at the Commonwealth Secretariat, an inter-governmental agency of Commonwealth countries in London. "After consulting all parties concerned, I appointed top economist Dr Indrajit Coomaraswamy to lead the Central Bank of Sri Lanka," the president posted on Twitter. The announcement ended any prospect of outgoing governor Arjuna Mahendran being reappointed after his tenure ended on Thursday. He had indicated he was prepared to complete another term. Sirisena had come under intense pressure not to reappoint Mahendran, who had faced allegations of insider trading. A group of Sri Lankan academics and professionals had gone to court to demand action against Mahendran, a Singapore national of Sri Lankan origin. Activists had threatened to take to the streets unless the president replaced him. He was accused last year of leaking inside information to his son-in-law's firm, allegedly allowing it to make millions of dollars in profits from a central bank bond auction. Mahendran has consistently maintained his innocence. Sri Lanka's economy is under stress and last month began receiving the first tranche of a $1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund. (AFP)

Sri Lanka's controversial central bank chief goes