DAMBULLA TAX RACKETEERS AND THEIR WHITE-COLLAR CRIMES

AND THEIR WHITE-COLLAR CRIMES

- By Prageeth Sampath Karunathilaka

Crimes committed with technical expertise and professionalism are known as white-collar crimes. Such crimes have been observed in the process of disposing of government lands. In these cases, officials bypass existing land laws by engaging in the drafting of misleading official documents. They often gain undue benefits, making these deliberate and well-planned offences. A network engaged in land rackets is involved in these activities.

Currently, a fuel station is being constructed in Dambulla sacred area. This has become a major concern for the local residents. How can a fuel station be allowed in a place where every inch of land within the plot of landwhere they were bornis supposedly reserved for the development of the sacred grounds, especially when land has been acquired through gazette notifications and low compensation? There is no opportunity to dig a toilet pit on this land without the permission of the Urban Development Authority. Yet, a private fuel station is being built right before their eyes. To them, this seems like a challenge to the law and they have good reason to feel that way. Since birth, they have known this land as the “public land”.

Systematic land grabbing