Customs agrees to conditional release of 991 detained BYD vehicles, Court told

Friday, 8 August 2025 00:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Sri Lanka Customs informed the Court of Appeal yesterday that it is prepared to release 991 BYD electric vehicles currently held in detention, subject to specific conditions.

The announcement was made during proceedings on a writ petition filed by John Keells CG Auto, the authorised local distributor for BYD, challenging the continued detention of the vehicles and requesting their release.

The case was heard before the Court of Appeal bench chaired by Justice Rohantha Abeysuriya, alongside Justice Priyantha Fernando.

Additional Solicitor General Sumathi Dharmawardena, presenting a letter from the Director General of Customs, told the Court that Customs would consider releasing the vehicles if the importer meets certain requirements. Chief among these is the submission of a bank guarantee from a State-owned financial institution amounting to approximately Rs. 3.6 billion, representing the value of the contested difference in import duties. The Petitioner must also cover any interest arising from this guarantee.

Further, the letter specified that the Petitioner must cooperate fully with Customs’ ongoing investigation into the matter.

Another condition included the formation of a technical committee to assess the motor capacity of the vehicles, with members to include experts from the Universities of Peradeniya and Moratuwa, the Government Analyst’s Department, and the Department of Motor Traffic.

Following partial acceptance of the proposed conditions by the Petitioner, the Director General of Customs conveyed his agreement to the Court regarding the release of the vehicles.

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