Soon after the recent arrest of the owner of House of Fashions, a popular clothing store in Sri Lanka, a post spread quickly across social media claiming that Deputy Minister Arkam Ilyas had said, the House of Fashions owner was a huge threat to the Muslim textile-businessmen. The claim, tied to a Muslim politician and a communally charged moment, drew wide attention. We investigated. Here is what we found.
Social Media Posts:
Fact-Check:
No mainstream media outlet has published any report of Deputy Minister of Energy Arkam Ilyas making such a statement, and our own investigation found no instance of the Minister making such a remark.
Since the post was presented as having appeared on the “Headline News.lk” Facebook page, we checked that page directly but found no post attributing this statement to the Deputy Minister. The page confirmed it had published no such post, as follows:
Deputy Minister Arkam Ilyas Has NOT Made Such Statement
When we contacted the Minister’s media secretary, he too confirmed that these posts are false. The Deputy Minister has never, at any point, made any statement about the arrest of the House of Fashions owner. He noted that, because the Minister is Muslim, such fabricated claims appear to be circulated deliberately to stir communal tension for narrow political ends.
The photo used in the social media post was, in fact, taken of the Deputy Minister on 11 March at the launch of the Weliipitiya divisional programme under the “Rata Ekata” national operation to eradicate the drug menace from the country, and was originally posted on the Deputy Minister’s Facebook page.
The Arrest of the House of Fashions Owner
The owner of House of Fashions, Preethi Jayawardena, was arrested by Sri Lanka Customs in connection with an investigation into the customs-assessed values of imported goods.
After his arrest, Jayawardena suffered a heart attack and was admitted to the National Hospital in Colombo. The Chief Magistrate of Colombo visited the hospital to assess his condition before ordering him remanded. The proceedings relate to alleged violations of customs regulations. Further details are available here and here.
Conclusion:
The claim circulating on social media that Deputy Minister Arkam Ilyas said “the House of Fashions owner posed a serious threat to Muslim-owned textile businesses” is entirely false and fabricated. The Minister made no such statement.
The House of Fashions owner was remanded in connection with a Sri Lanka Customs investigation into tax and assessed-valuation matters.
Title: Deputy Minister Ilyas, Did NOT Issue Any Statement on ‘House of Fashions’ Owner’s Arrest
Fact Check By: Pavithra Sandamali
Result: False
