The violence of July 1983 continues to be a blemish in Sri Lanka’s long history. Instigated by a small organised group it led to the breakdown of law causing the Government to impose a curfew to maintain law and order.
The next time such an incident occurred was on May 9, 2022. The citizen’s struggle intending to herald in a system change took a violent turn leading to mass destruction and devastation.
As a result of the day’s events Polonnaruwa district MP Amarakeerthi Athukorala met the most brutal and tragic death in Nittambuwa on the day. His personal security officer Police Sergeant Jayantha Gunawardane was also killed along with him.
Tragic end
The MP and his personal security officer met their tragic end at the hands of an organised group combing the roads in Nittambuwa in search of those who were returning after attending a meeting with former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees that day.
A shooting took place when the group had attempted to check the vehicle in which Athukorala was travelling in, leaving six people injured and needing hospitalisation. The enraged mob then hunted down and killed the MP and his security officer who fled the scene in an attempt to save their lives. The CCTV images of businesses in the area recorded the chain of events ending in their deaths.
According to the post-mortem carried out Athukorala had died due to the physical assault he had suffered at the hands of his attackers. While Gunawardane’s service pistol went missing following the incident, it was later found in the possession of a former soldier, a resident of Walabadagama, Kuliyapitiya.
A staffer of a clothing store and a youth from Nittambuwa were arrested by the police in connection with the killings. Later the CID arrested one of the main suspects in the case, a private bus driver in the area. According to investigators, it was this suspect who had forced the MP and his PSO to alight from the vehicle and led the assault against them.
Despite claiming he was not one of those who attacked the Aragalaya group at the Galle Face Green the MP was brutally assaulted by the mob, it was revealed later.
Driver
According to his driver at the time Saman Kumara, the MP left his home in Polonnaruwa around 5.30 a.m on the day intending to attend the meeting with Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. “Around 12.30 pm he left Temple Tree and headed to the residence of Minister Siripala Gamlath. He had lunch and left there around 2.30 p.m to return to Polonnaruwa. He didn’t worry that any harm would come to him as he was kind and gentle to all. Seeing the group checking vehicles in Nittambuwa, the MP said we should tell them we were returning from a wedding. Then the mob surrounded us,” he recalled. Kumara said the mob forcefully pulled the MP and his PSO out. “I was also beaten brutally. One kind man saved me. I heard shooting as well. Later I heard that MP Athukorala was killed. It was a tragic incident. There may be corrupt politicians but he was the good sort,” he said.
Athukorala was a product of Thurstan College, Colombo. Following his higher education he joined Lanka Sathosa going on to become the Secretary to Polonnaruwa district MP Chandrasiri Sooriyarachchi who later invited him to enter politics. He was first elected to the North Western Provincial Council obtaining the highest number of preferential votes. He served his community well and especially supported the farmers in the province. It is said the public could meet him on any day of the week to present their grievances to him. He was well-liked in the community due to his nature of giving everyone the opportunity to voice their opinions on topics of public interest.
The late MP’s son Ranidu Athokorala said the opinion that all 225 MPs are corrupt must change.
Corrupt
“Not every MP is the same. The people must understand this difference. It is the media that perpetuates this idea that all 225 MPs are corrupt. But if they also focus on the service being done then the people can identify the dutiful public representatives,” he said. According to Ranidu the people of Polonnaruwa loved and respected his father. “He looked beyond party and other divides when helping people,” he said.
The late MP was commemorated in Parliament recently where the House observed a minute of silence in remembrance of him. A number of similar events were held in Polonnaruwa together with several projects such as renaming a road after him and its renovation. A bridge in Welikanda was also named after him and three buses were allocated in his honour to three rural bus routes.
The father who died in the line of service
(This is a memorial note by Jayandi Akithma Gunawardena, the daughter of the late Police Sergeant Janyantha Gunawardena. He was posthumously promoted to the rank of Sub-Inspector. He was also formerly the PSO of former Minister Imthiaz Bakeer Markar. Jayandi is currently reading for a degree in computer engineering.) My father left us at the moment we needed him the most.
The loss of a father is immeasurable to a daughter. I wish no other daughter in the world would have to face the suffering and pain caused by the untimely death of their father.
My father always carried out his duties to the best of his ability. On May 9, when many avoided reporting to work, he remained dedicated to service till his very last. My father was fond of MP Athukorala.
My father had many hopes and dreams for me. I am determined to achieve them in his honour. We wish he will meet us once again in this Samsara as my mother’s husband and as my father. We extend our deep gratitude to the politicians who conveyed their condolences on my father’s death as well as all Police personnel of the Sri Lanka Police.