|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Monday, 29 March 2004 |
 |
|
 |
Features | |
| News Business Features Editorial Security Politics World Letters Sports Obituaries
|
Tax Amnesty - unanimous decision by Supreme Court 5 member Bench "...thereby defrauded public revenue causing extensive loss to the state" by Nihal Sri Ameresekere, FCA, FCMA A 5-member Bench of the Supreme Court presided by Chief Justice, Sarath N. Silva, PC, and comprising Justices Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake, Hector S. Yapa, Asoka N. de Silva and Nihal Jayasinghe, exercising consultative jurisdiction, has delivered their unanimous decision to President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga under and in terms of Article 129 of the Constitution on the Tax Amnesty Law. The Supreme Court has held that the law violates the fundamental right to equality statutorily enshrined in terms of Article 12 of the Constitution, which is also a component of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Article 2), which provides for all persons to be equal before the law and to be entitled to equal protection of the law, which is an injunction issued by the Constitution to the Legislature against enacting discriminately laws. (In terms of Article 3, read with Article 4, of the Constitution, Sovereignty, which includes fundamental rights, which shall be respected and not be abridged, restricted or denied, is in the people and is inalienable). The Supreme Court has cited A. V. Dicey on Law of the Constitution - "That 'rule of law'... has three meanings, and may be regarded from three different points of view. It means, in the first place, the absolute supremacy or predominance of regular law as apposed to the influence of arbitrary power, and excludes the existence of arbitrariness of prerogative, or even of wide discretionary authority on the part of the government. Englishmen are ruled by the law, and by the law alone; ...It means, again, equality before the law, or the equal subjection of all classes to the ordinary law of the land administered by the ordinary law courts;..." The Supreme Court has held that the indemnities and immunities granted by the Tax Amnesty law would not only be inconsistent with Article 12 (1) of the Constitution, but also antithetic to the Rule of Law being the underlying basis of the Constitution. The Supreme Court has further held that it has to be borne in mind that public revenue is held in trust for the people, who cannot be denied its benefits, and that the Tax Amnesty law has provided full immunity, not only from liability to tax, but also from any investigation or prosecution from any offence under any laws specified in the schedule ...and that these laws have been enacted from time to time; the integrity and the strength established thereby is dependent on due compliance and effective enforcement. The Supreme Court has further held that, ironically, the basis of the differential treatment conferred by the Tax Amnesty law is the non compliance, the violation and the evasion of taxes and duties payable under the laws that are pivotal to the country's revenue, public finance and fiscal control, pointing out that the Performance Report of the Commissioner General of Inland Revenue for the Year 2002 states that the taxes in arrears as at 31st December 2002 is Rs. 68,723 million (which includes GST Rs. 19,027 million, Turnover Tax Rs. 10,299 million, and National Security Levy Rs. 7,029 million) and that this would reflect the loss of public revenue in relation to tax recoverable by the Commissioner General Inland Revenue, and that no estimate has been made of the losses resulted from the immunity granted in respect of Custom Duty, Excise Duty and other dues. The Supreme Court has finally held that the provisions of the Tax Amnesty law are inconsistent with Article 12 (1) of the Constitution. ...in that, it grants immunities and indemnities to persons who have contravened the laws... and thereby defrauded public revenue causing extensive loss to the state. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
Produced by Lake House |
