A day after the allotment of “free land” to former Sri Lankan cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan’s company, M/s Ceylon Beverage, sparked controversy in Jammu and Kashmir, it has emerged that the company has withdrawn from its Rs 1,650 crore investment plan in Kathua.
The decision to pull out was due to the expiration of incentives under the 2021 National Sector Industrial Policy, which ended in September last year. On Saturday, opposition lawmakers in the J&K Assembly raised concerns over the 26-acre land allotment for Muralitharan’s beverage company in Kathua, questioning why land was given “free of cost” to outsiders when locals were being denied land for housing under the Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana (PMAY).
CPM legislator Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami alleged that norms had been violated, stating, “This is what I am talking about. Land has to be allotted as per the laid norms to any person who applies for land for commercial purposes.” He further claimed that no money had been charged from the cricketer’s company for the allotment. However, official records indicate that the land was allotted at ₹64 lakh per acre, with an annual lease of ₹60,000 for the establishment of M/s Ceylon Beverage Can Pvt. Ltd. The company, registered in Chennai, already operates a unit in Mysore.
It has also come to light that Ceylon Beverage applied to withdraw from the project just a day before (March 6) and will now establish its bottling and can manufacturing plant in Pune instead.
According to officials, Rs 28,400 crore worth of incentives under the 2021 Industrial Development Scheme—including subsidies on capital investment, GST rebates on plant and machinery purchases, and financial assistance for working capital loans—expired in September last year. The Union Territory government had sought an extension in incentives, but approval from the Centre has not yet been received.
After waiting for some time, Muralitharan decided to relocate the project to Pune and officially applied for withdrawal from the investment proposal on March 6, officials said.
As per the company’s online profile, Ceylon Beverages is Sri Lanka’s largest beverage processing, filling, and exporting entity, providing contract filling services to major international clients like Coca-Cola and Nestlé.
The controversy over land allotment, coupled with the withdrawal of such a significant investment, has reignited debates over land policies and industrial incentives in Jammu and Kashmir. The opposition continues to question the government’s approach towards land allocation and industrial development, emphasizing the need for transparency and equal opportunities for local entrepreneurs.
