SriLanka, Sept. 22 -- The Supreme Court (SC) has brought to an end a 35-year-old legal battle over 50 slabs of gold seized at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in 1991, ruling that transit passengers are also subject to the jurisdiction of Sri Lanka Customs. A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena, Justice Arjuna Obeyesekere and Justice Mahinda Samayawardhena held that bringing gold into Sri Lanka constitutes an importation even where a passenger remains in transit and does not pass through immigration.

The proceedings relating to this matter continued for more than three decades and included successive appeals and the substitution of a new plaintiff following the death of the original claimant. Ju...