The Attorney General informed the Supreme Court today that the excise department has decided to suspend the licenses of five liquor companies including W.M. Mendis, If the arrears due to the government are not paid before the 30th of this month .
Additional Solicitor General Nerin Pulle, who appeared before the court on behalf of the Commissioner General of Excise, informed me today (13) when a fundamental rights petition filed by a group including the president of the ”Magen Ratata” organization Sanjay Mahawatta was called.
There, Additional Solicitor General Nerin Pulle presented facts before the court who are named as respondents in this petition. WM Mendis Company, Royal Distilleries and 05 liquor manufacturing companies have informed that they will take steps to pay the tax arrears before the 30th of this month. The total amount of tax to be paid by those companies is 6 billion rupees.
The Additional Solicitor General mentioned that the department has decided to suspend their licenses if they fail to pay the arrears. That petition was called before the Supreme Court bench consisting of Prithi Padman Surasena, Yasanta Kodagoda and Priyantha Fernando.
The three-judge panel ordered to convene this petition again on January 22, and the respondents were also ordered to inform the progress of these proceedings on that day.