(COLOMBO) – Tension was high in a north-western Sri Lankan town on Thursday after police gunned down a truck driver and they later claimed it was an accidental shooting.
Enraged residents surrounded the local police station at Narammala and demanded justice for the unjustified killing during a routine check.
The enraged mob had also caused damage to the police station prompting the authorities to deploy special commandos to calm down the atmosphere.
As such, a team of Police Special Task Force (STF) had been deployed to disperse the protesters.
The police media division earlier said the driver had failed to comply with a signal to stop at a checkpoint in Dampelessa, Narammala, but later added that two policemen had been arrested over the incident.
Some 40,000 persons mainly drug users and dealers have been arrested in a special police crackdown code named ‘Yukthiya’ or Justice throughout the country since Christmas Eve last year.
The so-called operation has come under heavy criticism from both local and international rights groups that have accused the authorities of arbitrary arrests that include strip searches and detainees held in inhumane conditions.
There have also been a number of police excesses during the operation with officers targeting individuals over personal of family rivalries.
The operation is being spearheaded by a controversial top policeman Dehabandu Tennakoon who was recently convicted in the country’s High Court for torture and violating the freedom and rights of an ex-soldier who had been in detention for an alleged robbery.
Tennakoon is currently the Actg. Police Chief of the island nation and his appointment has been challenged by several individuals and groups in the court.
