The Colombo Magistrate’s Court has ordered the exhumation of the body of a 26-year-old youth who died while in police custody at the Welikada Police Station, to allow for a fresh postmortem examination.
The order was issued by Additional Magistrate Kemintha Perera following a request made by the aggrieved party. The court directed that the re-examination be conducted by a three-member panel of specialist doctors, under the supervision of the Colombo Chief Judicial Medical Officer, who has also been instructed to submit a full and independent report.
The young man was reportedly arrested in connection with an incident that took place in the Nawala area on April 1. According to police, he displayed unruly behavior while in custody and was later transferred to the National Institute of Mental Health in Mulleriyawa, where he died in the early hours of April 2.
Police claim that the injuries on the deceased’s body were self-inflicted, asserting that he was in an unstable mental state at the time of his death.
However, the incident has sparked serious concern from the Bar Association of Sri Lanka and several other civil society groups. In a statement, the Bar Association said the circumstances surrounding the youth’s death are troubling and raise significant questions about accountability, transparency, and public trust in the country’s law enforcement and justice systems.
