Minister of Tourism and Lands Harin Fernando said that he has written to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) urging action to be taken against various false claims concerning the minister.
Addressing the media today, Fernando was referring to the recent controversy surrounding the issuance of visas to foreign visitors, where allegations were made that the process was outsourced to Indian companies.
“I have written to the IGP in this regard. I will be lodging a complaint under the provisions of the Online Safety Act. There have been false posts published online, claiming that I am the person behind the Indian company issuing visas,” Fernando said.
The Minister said that a statement he made previously that Sri Lanka’s airport management operations may be outsourced to an Indian company, had been confused with the recent controversy.
“The airports come under the purview of the Civil Aviation Authority, which comes under Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva. Immigration meanwhile comes under the purview of Minister Tiran Alles. I have no connection with either. Airport management and Immigration are two different fields,” the Minister explained.
Minister Fernando said that he had urged the IGP to take action against those who had made such false statements against him. “There must be a limit to making false allegations against a person,” the Minister said. “In Sri Lanka, any issue concerning tourism is likely to attract my name,” he added. (Newswire)