Controversial business figure Arjun Aloysius, along with two others, has been released from remand custody after serving a six-month prison sentence for defaulting on a Rs. 3.5 billion Value Added Tax (VAT) payment.
Prison spokesman Gamini Dissanayake confirmed their release from Welikada Prison earlier today.
The trio had been sentenced by the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court in October 2023 after the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) filed a case against W.M. Mendis Distilleries for failing to pay the outstanding VAT amount from 2016 to 2019.
The case was taken up before Colombo Additional Magistrate Bandara Ilangasinghe on October 14, during which the release was confirmed.
The court had initially ordered the accused on November 14, 2023, to settle the due payment. However, their failure to comply with this order led to their imprisonment.
With their release, the legal battle surrounding the tax default continues to raise concerns over corporate accountability and financial transparency in the country.
Rather ironic, when people of a lesser crime are sentenced to a much longer period in jail.