Former Minister Wimal Weerawansa has filed a fundamental rights petition in the Supreme Court seeking an order to nullify the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Sri Lanka and India for the implementation of the digital identity card project for Sri Lankan citizens.
The petition states that the MoU would result in highly adverse consequences, as it enables the transfer of Sri Lankan citizens’ biometric and personal data to an external party. Filing the petition in his capacity as a former Minister of Digital Economy, Weerawansa named the President, Prime Minister, and the Cabinet of Ministers as respondents, holding them accountable for the agreement.
Weerawansa noted that the MoU between Sri Lanka and India had originally been signed during the previous administration in 2022. He added that the Cabinet had subsequently reached two decisions, on 27 January and 02 June, to amend the agreement.
The petition also points out that, while the Department for Registration of Persons had been preparing a domesticmechanism to issue digital identity cards, entrusting this responsibility to India, outside the government procurement process, was both arbitrary and unlawful.
By A.J.A. Abeynayake 