Falsely arrested and tortured disabled Tamil man submits complaint at Human Rights Commission

03 June 2020

An elderly disabled man was falsely accused and arrested by police officers and tortured in custody. A complaint regarding the incident has been lodged at the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, in Jaffna.

In his complaint, he stated that he was brutally tortured on the night of the incident by the police officers and arrested under a false accusation, despite not being involved.  

The incident occurred on May 24, around 11pm, while the curfew restrictions were still enforced. Two groups were involved in a clash in Keerimalai, Jaffna.

Following this, M. Uthayananthan, sub-inspector of the Kankesanturai (KKS) police department, led a team to investigate the scene where the clash had taken place and identify the perpetrators involved to arrest them.

When Uthayananthan went to the scene, he was attacked with a sword and immediately taken to the Tellippalai hospital.

The KKS police department were informed of the attack and went to the scene to identify the perpetrator that attacked the sub-inspector. They arrested the disabled man in connection with the attack that took place.

He was granted and released on bail the next day by the Mallakam Magistrate's Court.