Sri Lanka ex-immigration chief jailed for 2 years over contempt of court

Colombo, Sep 23 (PTI) Sri Lanka's former immigration chief on Tuesday was sentenced to two years of rigorous imprisonment by the Supreme Court on contempt of court charges for defying a directive on tourist visa processing.

A three-judge bench held former Controller General of Immigration and Emigration Harsha Ilukpitiya guilty of failing to implement the court's July 2024 order to halt an outsourced electronic tourist visa-on-arrival system and revert to the previous mechanism.

Ilukpitiya had been in remand custody since September 25 last year after being found in defiance of the directive.

The apex court noted that several bail applications filed by the former immigration chief over the past year had been rejected.

The ruling came in connection with a fundamental rights petition filed by opposition politicians, who alleged that the outsourced visa operation was a scam and urged for its suspension.

The new system, introduced in April 2024, led to long delays at Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport and increased processing fees.

The Supreme Court last year directed that the outsourced operation be halted, but Ilukpitiya failed to comply, leading to Tuesday's sentencing. PTI CORR SCY SCY