Is smuggled granite for Basil?
TUESDAY, 16 SEPTEMBER 2014
The person who smuggled granite to the country and the person who allowed him to go scot free have been revealed. Granite has been imported to Sri Lanka giving false data by a businessman called Harsha Prabath Silva. He is a consultant to the Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa and Minister Basil Rajapaksa has acted in a very spurious manner to get the stock of granite released from Customs.
When such a fraud like giving false data is detected the Director General of Customs can take only two decisions. One is to confiscate the goods and fine thrice the value of goods or release the goods and fine thrice the value of goods.
The businessman through the Minister has got the Customs to agree to inspect the goods at a place belonging to him in Negombo under the pretext that there are no facilities at Customs. Once the goods were removed Customs officers received a letter asking them not to inspect the goods at the place where they were taken to. No legal action has been taken for the goods that were taken away without any proper procedure.
It is this businessman who complained in January, 2013 that Director of Customs Ranjan Kanakasabe accepted bribes which created an outburst.
