The Presidential Commission of Inquiry probing the alleged malpractices in connection with the Edirisinghe Trust Investment Limited (ETI) convened its first meeting yesterday (06).

The tri-member Commission is chaired by retired Supreme Court Justice K.T. Chitrasiri and retired Solicitor General Suhada Gamlath and Senior Banker DM Gunasekera have been appointed as its members.

The Commission was appointed by a gazette extraordinary notification issued on the 9th of January with the signature of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Although there was a large number of aggrieved depositors were present at yesterday’s meeting, no legal representative appeared before the Presidential Commission on behalf of the ETI Finance Limited.

During panel’s proceedings, Additional Solicitor General Priyantha Navana has said that despite the ETI Finance Limited being termed as a regulated financial institution by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka it would be necessary to look into the grounds on which the Central Bank made its decision.

He went on to say that during the time that ETI Finance Limited was disposing its assets, it had sold a Sri Lankan media institution to a foreign institution named Ben Holdings, adding that the Commission must verify the possibility such action under Sri Lankan law.

He revealed that the ETI Finance Limited had financial liabilities amounting to Rs. 23,445 million and 23,362 depositors as of December 31, 2019.

The Additional Solicitor General also requested a report to be prepared and presented by any officer of the ETI Finance Company appointed by the Central Bank regarding the 23,363 depositors of the finance company.

The panel then ordered that the Registrar of the Companies be summoned to the Commission on the 23rd of March.