After deal went sour between Excise and liquor manufacturers: Harsha De Silva

Colombo, March 14 (Daily Mirror) - The series of raids made in the North and East over the weekend to seize a large stock of liquor bottles with forged security stickers was over a deal that went sour between the Excise and liquor manufacturers, Opposition MP Harsha de Silva said.

Samagi Jana Balawegaya Parliamentarian Dr. Harsha de Silva addressing the media said yesterday that a dispute in a payment between certain Excise officials and some liquor manufacturers had led to the raids.

He said that neither the information related to the raids made in the North and East nor the suspects arrested in the cases were revealed by the Excise, as the detections were made to pressure the errant liquor manufacturers and to demand money to settle it afterwards.

“We will never let this kind of thing to happen in the future and will not let these errant manufacturers come into a settlement by paying bribes to Excise officials,” Dr. De Silva said.

He urged the Excise Commissioner General M J Gunasiri to bring the culprits who were responsible for issuing liquor bottles with fake security stickers to the market to book immediately.

The Department of Excise in a series of multiple snap raids carried out in the Northern, North Central and Eastern provinces seized a large stock of local liquor bottles with forged security stickers.