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COPF: Tax concessions granted to BoI enterprise should be scrutinised

Published

3 years ago

2022/10/17

Thilina Walpola

‘There cannot be special status for anyone when across the board 30% tax is imposed on exporters’

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chairman and SJB MP Dr. Harsha de Silva says unprecedented tax concessions given to HCL Technologies (HCL) that entered into an agreement with John Keels Holdings (JKH) last year should be reviewed in view of the imposition of a controversial 30 percent tax across the board on companies in the exports sector with effect from 01 Nov.Dr de Silva emphasised that reappraisal was necessary as the proposed tax would be imposed in line with the recent staff-level agreement reached with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Noting that the agreement hadn’t been tabled in Parliament yet, the Colombo District MP said that India-Sri Lanka joint enterprise couldn’t be granted special status in terms of the Strategic Development Project Act, No. 14 of 2008 at a time the country was in dire straits.

Dr. de Silva said on Saturday (15) that particular Act should be rescinded in view of the agreement with the IMF. The economist questioned the unchecked authority enjoyed by the Minister, assigned that particular subject, to grant concessions up to a period of 25 years.Responding to another query, Dr. de Silva said that the economy was in such bad shape the whole process of granting concessions to investors should be reevaluated.

Failure to do so could trigger public protests at an unprecedented scale. SJB leader Sajith Premadasa has repeatedly flayed the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa government over declaration of a range of taxes. The COPF on Oct 04 granted approval for sweeping tax concessions to the HCL-JKH enterprise, less than 24 hours after rejecting the proposal made by Chairman of the Board of Investment (BoI) Raja Edirisuriya for exemptions of VAT, Dividend tax, PAL, CESS, Income tax, customs duty, etc.

At the time of the new appointment, Edirisuriya served as the Executive Director of the Colombo Port City Development Project. One-time Chairman of bankrupt Mihin Lanka succeeded Sanjaya Mohottala, who resigned after having appointed 29 staff with salaries over Rs 700,000 a month.

Under the agreement between HCL and JKH, the former occupied 80 percent of space in the 30-storey Grade –A state-of-the–art Cinnamon Life complex. The finalization of that agreement and the inauguration of the project was attended by the then BoI Chairman Sanjaya Mohottala, JKH Chairman Krishan Balendra, Indian High Commissioner Gopal Baglay, the then Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa, HCL Technologies Chief Financial Officer Prateek Aggarwal, and Corporate Vice President Srimathi Shivashankar.

The Island sought an explanation from Dr. de Silva why the COPF granted approval having lambasted the top management of the BoI for seeking a far-reaching tax holiday at a time the bankrupt government was taxing all, regardless of the consequences. Dr. de Silva said the parliamentary watchdog committee didn’t enjoy executive powers.

Referring to a statement issued that had been issued by Parliament on Oct 04 in this regard, Dr. de Silva said though the parliamentary watchdog committee granted approval for the relevant after receiving required information, the basis for giving such tax concessions should be properly analyzed and a appropriate policy prepared in future to determine the tax concessions depending on the size of the investment.

Minister Vidura Wickramanayaka, State Ministers Shehan Semasinghe, (Dr.) Suren Raghavan, Members of Parliament Anura Priyadharshana Yapa (Dr Harsha de Silva’s predecessor), Chandima Weerakkody, Mayantha Dissanayake, Harshana Rajakaruna and Prof Ranjith Bandara (Chairman, Committee on Public Enterprises) attended the Oct. 04 COPF meeting.HCL entered Sri Lanka in 2020 as the country was rapidly heading towards economic crisis.

The COPF earned praise from the public for the stand taken at the Oct 03 meeting where the outfit strongly opposed India-based Tech Company a slew of tax concessions spanning more than 10 years, including an exemption from the income tax for 17 years, with the final five at half the rate. Both de Silva and COPF member Dr. Suren Raghavan declared the BoI proposal was unacceptable. At one point SLFPer Raghavan said that he didn’t want his house to be attacked again. Referring to the destruction of his house during the July 1983 riots, Dr. Raghavan said that the same fate would befall him if the COPF granted such concessions. However, MP de Silva advised Dr. Raghavan not to be so dramatic.

The COPF took a strong stand after the top management of the BoI failed to answer Dr. de Silva’s query regarding the basis for such large tax concessions. The MP asked: “You are asking the COPF to grant a 12-year total tax holiday. If this was approved, what is the tax benefit that would be given to the company and the foregone tax to the Government?”

An irate de Silva said “This is embarrassing, Chairman. This is not how to run a BoI. We have given you ample time to come up with the figures. You are embarrassing the Government, coming here asking for a massive tax break for 17 years. Can you run a county like this Chairman? Even a tea boutique is run better. You should feel very very bad and be ashamed. Your conduct is not professional, this is not how to conduct official business. In my entire career, I have not faced such a hopeless situation like this.” Dr. de Silva questioned Edirisuriya over his role in the Colombo Port City development. The COPF asserted that the BoI was struggling to cope up with its duties, and responsibilities, and run in an extremely unprofessional manner.

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Landslide Early Warnings issued to the Districts of Kandy and Nuwara Eliya

Published

44 mins ago

2026/02/13

Priyan

The Landslide Early Warning Center of the National Building Research Organisation [NBRO] has issued landslide early warnings to the districts of Kandy and Nuwara Eliya valid from 06:00 hrs on 13.02.2026 to 06:00 hrs on 14.02.2026

Accordingly,
Level II [AMBER] landslide early warnings have been issued to the Divisional Secretaries Divisions and surrounding areas of Walapane and Nildandahinna in the Nuwara Eliya district.

Level I [YELLOW] landslide early warnings have been issued to the Divisional Secretaries Divisions and surrounding areas of Pathahewheta in the Kandy district.

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Former Minister Professor Tissa Vitharana has passed away at the age of 91

Published

55 mins ago

2026/02/13

Priyan

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GL: Proposed anti-terror laws will sound death knell for democracy

Published

5 hours ago

2026/02/13

Thilina Walpola

Prof. Peiris

‘Media freedom will be in jeopardy’

Former Minister of Justice, Constitutional Affairs, National Integration and Foreign Affairs Prof. G. L. Peiris has warned that the proposed Protection of the State from Terrorism Act (PSTA) will deal a severe blow to civil liberties and democratic rights, particularly media freedom and the overall freedom of expression.

Addressing a press conference organised by the joint opposition alliance “Maha Jana Handa” (Voice of the People) in Colombo, Prof. Peiris said the proposed legislation at issue had been designed “not to protect people from terrorism but to protect the State.”

Prof. Peiris said that the proposed law would sound the death knell for the rights long enjoyed by citizens, with journalists and media institutions likely to be among those worst affected.

Prof. Peiris took exception to what he described as the generous use of the concept of “recklessness” in the draft, particularly in relation to the publication of statements and dissemination of material. He argued that recklessness was recognised in criminal jurisprudence as a state of mind distinct from intention and its scope was traditionally limited.

“In this draft, it becomes yet another lever for the expansion of liability well beyond the properly designated category of terrorist offences,” Prof. Peiris said, warning that the elasticity of the term could expose individuals to prosecution on tenuous grounds.

Prof. Peiris was particularly critical of a provision enabling a suspect already in judicial custody to be transferred to police custody on the basis of a detention order issued by the Defence Secretary.

According to the proposed laws such a transfer could be justified on the claim that the suspect had committed an offence prior to arrest of which police were previously unaware, he said.

“The desirable direction of movement is from police to judicial custody. Here, the movement is in the opposite direction,” Prof. Peiris said, cautioning that although the authority of a High Court Judge was envisaged, the pressures of an asserted security situation could render judicial oversight ineffective in practice.

Describing the draft as “a travesty rather than a palliative,” Prof. Peiris said the government had reneged on assurances that reform would address longstanding concerns about existing counter-terrorism legislation. Instead of removing objectionable features, he argued, the new bill introduced additional provisions not found in the current Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).

Among them is a clause empowering the Defence Secretary to designate “prohibited places”. That was a power not contained in the PTA but previously exercised, if at all, under separate legislation such as the Official Secrets Act of 1955. Entry into such designated places, as well as photographing, video recording, sketching or drawing them, would constitute an offence punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment or a fine of up to Rs. 3 million. Prof. Peiris said. Such provision would have a “particularly chilling effect” on journalists and media personnel, he noted.

The former minister and law professor also criticised the breadth of offences defined under the draft, noting that it sought to create 13 categories of acts carrying the label of terrorism. This, he said, blurred the critical distinction between ordinary criminal offences and acts of terrorism, which require “clear and unambiguous definition with no scope for elasticity of interpretation.”

He cited as examples offences such as serious damage to public property, robbery, extortion, theft, and interference with electronic or computerised systems—acts which, he argued, were already adequately covered under existing penal laws and did not necessarily amount to terrorism.

Ancillary offences, too, had been framed in sweeping terms, Prof. Peiris said. The draft legislation, dealing with acts ‘associated with terrorism,’ imposed liability on persons “concerned in” the commission of a terrorist offence. “This is a vague phrase and catch-all in nature.” he noted.

Similarly, under the subheading ‘Encouragement of Terrorism,’ with its reference to “indirect encouragement,” could potentially encompass a broad spectrum of protest activity, Prof. Peiris maintained, warning that the provision on “Dissemination of Terrorist Publications” could render liable any person who provides a service enabling others to access such material. “The whole range of mainstream and social media is indisputably in jeopardy,” Prof. Peiris said.

Former Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa and SLFP Chairman Nimal Siripala de Silva also addressed the media at the briefing.

by Saman Indrajith ✍️