Weerasekera Kamkanamge Tharuka Lakshan is a married and father of two, residing at No. 03, Nandamithra Village, Ballagaswewa Grama Niladhari Division, Hambantota. He runs a garage to make a living.
Tamara Kaushalya, a resident of the same village, had lodged a complaint with the Hambantota Port Police alleging that she had been threatened and blamed by three persons including Tharuka Lakshan.
According to the victims, it was a false complaint and the complainant who has violence personality and she is usually arguing with the majority of the residents of the village.
According to her complaint, an officer of the Hambantota Port Police had informed to Tharuka, Maduranga, Manju and Chanaka to come to the Hambantota Port Police Station for investigate the complaint. The suspects had gone to the Hambantota Port Police Station at 9.00 am that day. At the moment they went to the police station, Tamara Kaushalya who was already there and had shown them to Dayaratne Ralahamy and an SI while talking with those officers.
The sub-inspector then called Tharuka Lakshan to near him and asked him what his name was. After he was said his name, the sub-inspector started to beaten him. That officer hit several times at victim’s face by hand. At that moment, his lips were bleeding and he said, “Don’t hit me. I do not have done anything wrong. My lips were split. ” Then he was made to sit on a chair and hit in the head, face and body by officer’s hands. Thereafter, Dayaratne Ralahamy had put the person in jail. Then at around 9: 30-9.45 Dayaratne Ralahamy came into the cell and asked, “Are you a thug?” and this person was placed on the concrete wall of the prison cell and once again hit at his face, head and body by hands. At that moment, Tamara Kaushalya was watching the officer attacking him from near the prison cell where he was staying.
Between 12.30 – 01.00 pm on that day, Dayaratne Ralahamy had taken Tharuka out of the cell and taken him to the place where Inquire complaints and asked him to put his signature on a written statement. “I signed it, I was not given any chance to read and understood, I do not know what was written in it” he says. At the time the three people who came to the police station with him, and Tamara Kausalya were also there. After that, SI was scolded him again and said that to tharuka, “Do not get caught again” and has released him.
Tharuka Lakshan, who was assaulted by the police, said that he could not speak due to the assault and that he had a split lip, a broken tooth and a severe headache. The Right to Life Human Rights Center has been informed about the incident and victim has requested to protect the lives of him and his witnesses from possible intimidation, false accusations and from threats that can be occur to their lives.
Hambantota police assault a father of two
