Sri Lankan police threaten Valikamam North chairman after Thaiyiddy court ruling

Sri Lankan police officers reportedly threatened to arrest Valikamam North Pradeshiya Sabha chairman S. Sugirthan if the council proceeds with efforts to reclaim Bhavani Road from the illegally constructed Tissa Vihara in Thaiyiddy, despite the Mallakam Magistrate dismissing a police attempt to halt the council’s action.

The warning was made outside the Mallakam Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, shortly after the court dismissed an application filed by Palaly Police seeking to prevent the local authority from recovering the council-owned road.

According to reports, police officers, including the Assistant Superintendent of Police for the Kankesanthurai division, told Sugirthan to abandon efforts to recover the road and warned that he would be arrested if the council proceeded.

The warning came after the Mallakam Magistrate’s Court rejected the police application and fully discharged Sugirthan and the Pradeshiya Sabha secretary from the case.

Sri Lankan Police in Palaly had sought to prevent the council from removing a fence obstructing Bhavani Road, which belongs to the Valikamam North Pradeshiya Sabha but lies within the area occupied by the Tissa Vihara.

The council began efforts to reclaim Bhavani Road in April, when it conducted a survey of the area.

Sugirthan subsequently instructed the vihara’s chief monk to remove the fence blocking the road, warning that the council would otherwise remove it and recover the associated costs from the vihara itself. Sugirthan was previously summoned to Palaly Police Station, where officers reportedly warned him to abandon the move to recover the road. At the time, police claimed that removing the fence could create tensions between communities and lead to a breach of the peace.

After Sugirthan refused to halt the council’s plans, police took the matter to the Mallakam Magistrate’s Court. The court found no basis to conclude that removing the obstruction would cause a breach of the peace or undermine ethnic reconciliation, and dismissed the police application.

The subsequent warning outside the courthouse has raised concerns over police interference following the court’s decision. Critics have warned that threatening action against the council chairman over the same dispute could amount to contempt of court. Sugirthan said he intends to lodge a written complaint with senior police officials over the incident.

He also maintained that the council would proceed with its efforts to reclaim Bhavani Road and said steps would be taken soon to recover the road.

The dispute had earlier drawn criticism from President’s Counsel M. A. Sumanthiran, who accused the police of acting with a “Sinhala-Buddhist supremacist mindset” in seeking to prevent the council from reclaiming a public road belonging to the local authority. Sumanthiran appeared in court on behalf of the Valikamam North Pradeshiya Sabha chairman and secretary during earlier proceedings.

The Tissa Vihara in Thaiyiddy was constructed on privately owned Tamil land without legal authorisation. Its construction and continued occupation of Tamil-owned land have sparked years of protests by local residents and landowners demanding the return of their property. Tamil landowners have staged protests against the vihara every full moon day since 2023, despite surveillance and repeated police action.

The site has also seen arrests and court cases against Tamil residents and activists who have opposed the structure. Earlier this year, two Tamil youths were arrested after reportedly taking photographs near the disputed vihara, further fuelling concerns over police intimidation around the site.