A woman from the Habaraduwa area alleges that the Habaraduwa Police are committing inhumane assaults, false cases and threats against her family.
She states that after filing a fundamental rights case against the Habaraduwa Police under the number SCFR/01/25 in January 2025, the police pressured her to withdraw the case in various ways. She also states that after rejecting those demands, her family has been facing threats and harassment.
Accordingly, on March 17, 2026, she alleges that several police officers not wearing uniforms entered her house from behind, arrested the woman’s second son, Shehan Gayantha, and beat him with their hands and feet. It is reported that these officers also assaulted two of his friends at that time.
Furthermore, she states that they tried to make false accusations by showing a substance called drugs, claiming that it was in the bathroom of the house, and when she protested and tried to videotape it, the police officers also assaulted her and took away her mobile phone, and she stated that her teeth were damaged due to the assault. She also stated that a female police officer was present at her house at that time and that she had tried to arrest the woman and that the woman in question had fled the house and hidden.
Accordingly, after the assault, she was admitted to the Karapitiya Hospital, where she stated that a front tooth was broken and that a surgery was performed on her leg.
Meanwhile, on March 18, 2026, Shehan Gayantha was produced before the court and a three-day detention order was obtained, and he was accused of having drugs in his possession. It is also stated that his two friends who were arrested with him have also been charged with drug charges and imprisoned.
However, the family states that they did not have any drugs in their possession at the time of their arrest.
She has complained to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka and its Matara office regarding this incident, stressing that her life and family’s safety are at serious risk due to police activities.
She further alleges that this process is a revenge aimed at forcing her to withdraw the fundamental rights case and calls on the authorities to conduct a prompt and independent investigation and take legal action against the police officers responsible for this incident.
