Dr. Harsha points out masses are burdened with cascading taxes

While online casinos and betting roam free without being taxed

Opposition MP Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday alleged that the actual tax burden on consumers was closer to 22 percent, despite the Government’s claim that Value Added Tax (VAT) stood at 18 percent, due to the cascading impact of the Social Security Contribution Levy (SSCL).

Speaking to the media, Dr. de Silva said the SSCL was imposed at several stages of the supply chain, including manufacturing, distribution, logistics and retail, with the additional costs ultimately being passed on to consumers.

He also criticised the Government over what he described as a delay in bringing online casinos and betting applications under the tax framework, claiming that such operators continued to earn substantial revenues without contributing taxes.

Dr. de Silva said he would closely monitor the June 30 deadline set by the Government for bringing these businesses into the tax net, and questioned the reasons behind the delay.

The Opposition MP further argued that the country’s existing tax policies had placed an unfair burden on consumers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), while allowing certain sectors to remain outside the tax system.

Apropos ‘Creditor receives USD 2.5 mn as Lankan public bears loss from theft of Treasury funds’, government sources told The Island that the payment hadn’t been made yet. Other sources, familiar with the issue at hand, said that regardless of the payments made to the tune of USD 2.5 mn to fake foreign accounts, Sri Lanka would have to settle the loans within a stipulated period or would be in default, though the due date could be altered through negotiations.

Sources explained that relevant parliamentary procedures had to be followed to make fresh payments.

Police have launched a manhunt for a software engineer suspected of abandoning the body of his girlfriend inside a parked car near Teldeniya Hospital.

The deceased was identified as Shamya Darshani, 34, a physiotherapist attached to the Ampara District General Hospital.

Police said that the suspect, a resident of Gannoruwa, Kandy, had allegedly transported the woman’s body in a vehicle, left it parked near the hospital and fled. Police have appealed to the public for information leading to his arrest.

The investigation began after the victim’s brother, a resident of Kota Wewa, Thalawa, lodged a complaint with the Nuwara Eliya Police, on June 17, reporting that his sister, who had been staying at an apartment complex in Nuwara Eliya, had informed him that she had not eaten for several days.

Acting on the complaint, police searched the apartment but found it vacant. However, CCTV footage reportedly showed the suspect arriving at the apartment around 9.50 p.m., on June 16, and remaining there for about 40 minutes. The footage later showed him carrying the unconscious woman from the premises, at about 10.30 p.m. before driving away.

While Nuwara Eliya Police were investigating the disappearance, the Officer-in-Charge of Teldeniya Police received an anonymous telephone call stating that a woman’s body was inside a car, parked near the Teldeniya Hospital.

Police officers who inspected the locked vehicle found the body lying on the front passenger seat, covered with a black cloth. The vehicle was subsequently opened and the body recovered.

Further inquiries confirmed that the deceased was the woman reported missing from Nuwara Eliya.

Police investigations have revealed that the victim and the suspect had been in a relationship for about eight months. Investigators suspect that the woman had borrowed nearly Rs. 15 million from a bank and several individuals and handed the money to the suspect with plans to migrate to Canada together.

According to police, the victim had been under severe mental stress after creditors demanded repayment and the planned migration failed to materialise. She had reportedly moved into the Nuwara Eliya apartment on June 3.

Investigators said she had informed her brother that she had not eaten for three days and had also contacted a psychiatrist at the Ampara District General Hospital seeking assistance for mental distress. She had been advised to seek immediate treatment at the nearest hospital.

Her mobile phone had reportedly been switched off after 4 p.m. on June 16, prompting her brother to lodge a complaint with police.

Police also revealed that the vehicle used to transport the body belongs to another woman from the Ampara area who is also alleged to have been in a relationship with the suspect.

An open verdict was returned following the post-mortem examination, with authorities stating that the exact cause and manner of death have yet to be determined.

Further investigations are being conducted under the direct supervision of the Senior Superintendent of Police in charge of the Nuwara Eliya Division.

 by Norman Palihawadane and S.K. Samaranayake