Financial Times

Court halts JEDB estate lease
A controversial attempt to lease a tea estate under the Janatha Estates Development Board( JEDB) to a private investor has been halted by the Court of Appeal after the Ceylon Planters' Society filed a petition against the move. The court has issued an interim order restraining Minister of Plantations Industries Lakshman Kiriella and the JEDB from leasing the Gallebodde Estate in Nawalapitiya to Multi Crop Planters (Pvt) Ltd.

The order was made consequent to a petition filed by the Ceylon Planters' Society and the superintendent of the Gallebodde Estate alleging that the move went against the decision of the Cabinet's Economic Policy Committee and the Public Enterprises Reform Commission (PERC). The JEDB and SPC which control the remaining state plantations, have asked the Treasury for funds due to to cash flow difficulties, while planters and labour unions have voiced concern over the state of affairs at the JEDB and SPC, and asked the government to intervene and take over the management of the two organisations.

The Economic Reforms Committee headed by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has decided that the debt-ridden State Plantations Corporation (SPC) and the JEDB should be restructured by the PERC.

The PERC has requested the two organisations not to dilute the estates pending its plans for restructuring, but had suggested they sell some of their non-core land assets to raise funds. The management of the two organisations has also been criticized for trying to launch a joint property development project on prime land at Colombo 7 while it was recommended that they sell off their assets to raise funds in order to settle their debts.

The Ceylon Planters' Society said the petitioners of the Gallebode Estate case contended the attempt to hand over the estate to a private firm was "contrary to government policy, unlawful and ultra vires the powers of the JEDB".

They argued that the move would cause career planters on the estate irreparable harm, loss and damage and will deny the career planters elevation to higher positions of managerial responsibility, frustrate their legitimate expectations and deny them job security.

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