The Inland Revenue Department has filed a case before the Colombo Magistrate’s Court seeking an order to recover Rs.1,034 million in Value Added Tax (VAT) allegedly defaulted by the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) to the government, Newswire reported.
The CMC has been named as the respondent in the case, which was filed by the Commissioner General of Inland Revenue. The complaint is scheduled to be taken up before Colombo Additional Magistrate Oshadha Migara Maharachchi.
The action against the country’s largest local authority comes as the government tightens tax administration to shore up revenue under its IMF-backed fiscal programme, including a package of VAT amendments passed earlier this month. The CMC has itself been the subject of recent governance attention, including a dispute over three councillors crossing over as independents.
