In a landmark ruling, Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court declared the 2019 arrest of a woman wearing a dress wrongly believed to feature a Dharma Chakra as a fundamental rights violation, ordering compensation and systemic police reforms.
The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka has ruled that the arrest and detention of a woman by Hasalaka Police in 2019 for allegedly wearing a dress with a Dharma Chakra symbol violated her fundamental rights. The court determined that the image on the dress was not a Dharma wheel, as claimed by the police, but rather the rudder of a ship, leading to a wrongful arrest under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
The three-judge bench, comprising Justices Yasantha Kodagoda, Kumuduni Wickramasinghe, and Shiran Gunaratne, delivered the judgment on July 30 following a fundamental rights petition filed by Abdul Rahim Masahina, a resident of Kolongoda. The ruling emphasized the failure of Hasalaka Police to exercise due diligence before detaining the petitioner, resulting in the violation of her constitutional protections.
Inspector Chandana Nishantha, the then-Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the Hasalaka Police Station, was ordered to personally pay Rs. 30,000 in compensation to the petitioner. The court further mandated that no Police Department or collective police funds be used to settle the payment, requiring the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to submit an affidavit confirming compliance.
The Supreme Court also instructed the IGP to issue a circular subject to the Attorney General’s approval guiding all police officers on the proper protocols for making arrests under Article 3(1) of the ICCPR, in order to avoid future misuse of the law.
The petitioner’s attorney, Pulasthi Hewamanne, presented compelling evidence demonstrating that the arrest had no legal basis. He explained that while police had assumed the printed design on her dress was the Buddhist Dharma Chakra, closer analysis showed it was a ship’s rudder. This distinction invalidated the charges brought under the ICCPR, which aims to protect religious harmony and human dignity.
The incident occurred on May 17, 2019, within the Hasalaka Police Division. The petitioner filed her case seeking redress for what she described as an arbitrary and baseless violation of her rights. The court agreed that her arrest had no reasonable foundation and represented a significant abuse of legal process.
This ruling not only provides justice to the petitioner but also sets a precedent regarding the misuse of religious symbolism and misapplication of international covenants in Sri Lanka. Legal experts say it highlights the importance of restraint, accuracy, and accountability in law enforcement, especially in sensitive matters involving religious interpretation and individual expression.
