COLOMBO – Sri Lanka arrested as many as 21 Indians who were visiting the country on a tourist visa but were found abusing the visa.
Media reports imply that the arrested Indians were illegally involved in operating an online marketing centre in a flagrant violation of relaxed tourist visa norms.
The identities of the individuals were not released but the arrested individuals were in the age bracket of 24 to 25, who were in Sri Lanka on tourist visas.
The Indian citizens were taken into custody on Tuesday by the Department of Immigration and Emigration and further investigations have been launched to find out any other groups or whether a racket is behind the visa abuse.
Though an official version of law enforcers is awaited, media reports suggest that following a preliminary investigation, authorities conducted a raid on a rented property in Negombo City, where individuals were discovered to be operating an online marketing center.
In accordance with Sri Lankan regulations and regulations of the majority of countries, individuals visiting the country on tourist visas are prohibited from engaging in any form of paid or unpaid labor.
Having arrived in Sri Lanka during February and March on tourist visas, the individuals abused the tourist visa. The arrested individuals were later transferred to the department’s detention center in Welisara, as instructed by relevant authorities.
These Indian citizens had exploited the visa exemption granted by Sri Lanka to select countries until March 31, as part of an ongoing initiative to boost tourism in the financially strained nation.
