The said expenses have not been declared in Parliament by the previous government and it is said that veterans in the finance sector too, are yet to learn details pertaining to these expenses.

Meanwhile, the AFP has reported that 'Sri Lanka's central bank on Friday raised benchmark interest rates for the first time in nearly four years by 50 basis points ahead of a possible IMF bailout.'

Earlier, foreign media also confirmed that Sri Lanka has made a formal request for an IMF bailout package to aid its struggling economy after a sharp slowdown in growth and with its budget deficit widening.

Internal sources say that the government hopes to obtain the bailout in April and initial discussions on this regard will be held soon.