Arundhika asks for bribes
Wednesday, 20 March 2013 
Parliamentarian Arundhika Fernando who has become a topic of many conversations following the controversy surrounding the importing of illegal alcoholic spirits has requested a businessman linked to the controversy a sum of Rs. 3.5 million to get a clarification on the news report on the matter.
MP Arundhika Fernando has said that he had connections to news websites operating inside Sri Lanka and overseas and has requested the monies assuring to remove the story on the illegal spirit imports to the country from the websites.
Meanwhile, alcohol businessman, MP Lakshman Wasantha Perera has made a special statement to The Sunday Leader newspaper saying that a certain website had asked for Rs. 3 million to stop the publication of a story on him. However, Perera has taken measures to publicize news reports through his Lak FM radio station to imply that Minister Johnston Fernando had imported the two containers carrying illegal alcoholic spirits that were confiscated by the authorities.
Also, the radio station V FM owned by Minister Johnston Fernando has publicized news reports implying that the two containers were imported by Perera.
Meanwhile, Muttaiah Shashidaran speaking to News of Colombo (NOC) about the controversial consignment of spirits has said that a certain person had requested Rs. 3 million from him to remove a story published about him in a website.
The Lankatruth website and the Lankadeepa newspaper have published a story saying that Minister Fernando and MP Perera have had a massive argument along the parliament lobby on the 19th over this incident.
The President has directed Finance Ministry Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundera to immediately order the Excise Department to release the controversial consignment of spirits before the matter gets out of hand and government members start openly fighting with and trading charges against each other.
Websites have continuously published exposes of Perera, who is accusing a website of trying to publish a story on him. Excise officials raided one of his alcohol dens in the Gampaha District following these exposes and had confiscated a stock of formalin and urea that were brought to manufacture alcohol.
According to the reports, Perera was issued a fine of Rs. 150 million, but First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa had intervened and reduced the fine to Rs. 40 million. Sources close to Perera have said that he constantly says that 75% of his earnings are given to the First Lady and that she uses it to maintain the Wickremesinghes.
It is no surprise that these fraudsters make derogatory statements against websites that reveal their dealings. However, we challenge the IGP to get a statement to resolve the allegations being leveled by Arundhika Fernando against Minister Johnston Fernando and the accusation made against Lakshman Wasantha Perera by Minister Fernando.
The CID is also challenged to inquire into the allegation leveled by alcohol businessman MP Perera about the alleged bribes solicited by news websites and reveal the truth.
I’m not involved in manufacturing illegal alcohol – Muttaiah Shashidaran
Tuesday, 19 March 2013 Former Sri Lanka test cricketer, Muttaiah Muralitharan’s brother, Muttaiah Shashidaran has denied any involvement in the importing of two containers carrying illegal alcohol spirits to the country that has now caused a massive controversy. He has made this comment in an e-mail sent to us in response to the publication of his name in an article in our website on the controversial importing of illegal alcohol spirits in two containers.
Since our website provides the right of reply to any person or group of people to respond on any news of feature article published in our website, we have published his response sent to our e-mail.
The e-mail is as follows:
Dear Sir,
I refer to the Article appeared on Lankanewsweb referring to me as involved in the importation of the 2 controversial Ethanol containers. I hereby deny any involvement in importation of the said containers or any involvement in any kind of Alcohol business. My name has been dragged into this issue to tarnish my brothers name who never had any black mark under his name during his entire carrier. I understand that there are people who would want to tarnish my brothers name.
Whilst denying all allegation I hereby very categorically state that I have no involvement in the said business and the article referring to my name is incorrect. Thus, I kindly request you to remove the said article as the info given in the said article about my involvement is false and baseless.
Thank you for understanding
Yours faithfully
Muthiah Sasidaran
Editor’s note:
The story that has mentioned Muttaiah Shashidaran’s name in our website has not in any way brought to disrepute the good name of his brother, Muttaiah Muralitharan in the cricketing field or insulted any of his family members. We published in the story that one of Muralidaran’s brother’s names has been connected to the controversy surrounding the stock of illegal alcohol imported to the country.
Shashidaran has said in his response that he is not in any way connected to any business related to alcohol. However, we firmly state that Shashidaran is connected to Minister Johnston Fernando’s arrack business.
We say without any doubt that Shashidaran has provided the know how to Minister Johnston Fernando to carry out a large scale lace business and has provides the technical support for the industry. Muttaiah Shashidaran is also a frequent visitor to the Internal Trade Ministry.
