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Senior excise officers involved in scam depriving govt. of revenue: Buddhika

Published

3 years ago

2023/08/24

Sahan Weerasooriya

Pathirana

By Saman Indrajith

SJB Matara District MP Buddhika Pathirana told Parliament yesterday that a tax scam where fake revenue stickers were pasted on bottles of alcohol to avoid paying tax was carried out with the assistance of senior officers of the Excise Department.

MP Pathirana said that he had received information that the fake stickers had been distributed from a house belonging to an Excise Superintendent.

“We have information of another incident when a group of Excise Officers went to raid a liquor shop, where fake stickers are issued in Passekudah, an Additional Commissioner of the Excise Department asked them over the phone to abandon the raid. The owner of the house and the one who gave the call were two officers accused in a bribery case in 2004. I call for an impartial probe,” the MP said.

MP Pathirana said that according to his information, fake stickers had been found in nearly 100 retail outlets around the country.

“Bottles of liquor with counterfeit stickers have been found among taverns in Jaffna, Galle, Ratnapura and Kahawatte during raids,” he said.

Pathirana said that liquor licences were given to some with links to excise officers.

State Minister for Finance Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said that an independent investigation would be conducted into the alleged tax scam.

Minister Siyambalapitiya said that the sticker was a budget proposal of 2016 to block the sale of tax-unpaid alcohol by licensed firms. The contract to print stickers had been awarded to an Indian company in 2017 at the rate of 1,000 stickers for 5.99 dollars. The next bid was 14.99 dollars. There was an appeal and a court case and it was awarded to the lower bidder, he said.

“At first, we saw good results. The excise revenue increased by Rs 19 billion. The liquor production increased by 11 percent. However, now we find that there are some problems. We are conducting an investigation on the orders of the President. The CID has been called in. We have enlisted the support of the Government Analyst. The Excise Officers have conducted raids in all provinces and detected counterfeit stickers. Action will be taken against those who engage in this scam without considering their posts,” Minister Siyambalapitiya said.

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Related Topics:MP Buddhika Pathirana SJB Matara District MP Buddhika Pathirana

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INS NIREEKSHAK makes port call in Colombo

Published

10 hours ago

2026/04/21

Priyan

The Indian Navy Ship (INS) NIREEKSHAK arrived in Sri Lanka for Operational Turnaround (OTR) and a training visit on 21 Apr 26.

The Sri Lanka Navy welcomed the visiting ship at the port of Colombo in accordance with time-honoured naval traditions.

Commanded by, Commander Sailesh Kumar Tyagi, this Diving Support Vessel is set to conduct a training programme with the diving professionals of the Sri Lanka Navy.

The crew is also scheduled to participate in several activities organized by the Sri Lanka Navy and visit some tourist attractions within the country.

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Advisory for Severe Lightning issued to the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, North-western, North-central, Southern, Uva provinces, and Mannar, Vavuniya, Ampara, Batticaloa districts

Published

12 hours ago

2026/04/21

Priyan

Advisory for Severe Lightning
Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre
Issued at 12.00 noon 21 April 2026 valid for the period until 11.30 p.m. 21 April 2026

Thundershowers accompanied with severe lightning are likely to occur in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, North-western, Northcentral, Southern, Uva provinces, and in Mannar, Vavuniya, Ampara, Batticaloa districts after 1.00 p.m.

There may be temporary localized strong winds during thundershowers. General public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by lightning activity.

ACTION REQUIRED:

The Department of Meteorology advises that people should:
 Seek shelter, preferably indoors and never under trees.
 Avoid open areas such as paddy fields, tea plantations and open water bodies during thunderstorms.
 Avoid using wired telephones and connected electric appliances during thunderstorms.
 Avoid using open vehicles, such as bicycles, tractors and boats etc.
 Beware of fallen trees and power lines.
 For emergency assistance contact the local disaster management authorities

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Six Foreign Envoys Present Credentials to President Dissanayake

Published

14 hours ago

2026/04/21

Priyan

Two High Commissioners, three Ambassadors and an Apostolic Nuncio-designate of the Holy See presented their credentials to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the Presidential Secretariat this morning (20).

The ceremony, held at 10.00 a.m., followed the formal order of precedence, with the envoys representing Papua New Guinea, Somalia, Luxembourg, the Holy See, Pakistan and Kuwait.

Accordingly, diplomats who presented their credentials were:

01. Vincent Sumale, High Commissioner-designate of Papua New Guinea (Based in New Delhi)

02. Abdullahi Mohammed Odowa, Ambassador-designate of Somalia (Based in New Delhi)

03. Christian Biever, Ambassador-designate of Luxembourg (Based in New Delhi)

04. Monsignor Andrzej Józwowicz, Apostolic Nuncio-designate of the Holy See

05. Major General (Retd) Nayyar Naseer, High Commissioner-designate of Pakistan

06. Saleh Mubarak Al-Sarawi, Ambassador-designate of Kuwait

Following the presentation of credentials, the President engaged in a cordial discussion with them. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath, and the Secretary to the President, Dr Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, were also in attendance.