Standing up to politicos in Kurunegala in 1978-79

Excerpted from Senior DIG Merril Gunaratne’s “Perils of a profession”

I rode into storms and tempests in Kurunegala from mid-1978. What happened in Kelaniya paled into insignificance when compared with encounters with politicians in Kurunegala. The ugly pattern of constant interference with some politicians interfering at will, helped by a compliant police, had taken firm root. Kurunegala division consisted of 14 electorates. I had no difficulty interacting with D. B Welagedera of Kurunegala, S.B Herath of Hiriyala, Sirisena of Bingiriya, Alawathuwala, Wanninayake, and Jayawickrama Perera of Pannala.

MPs Ratnayake of Panduwasnuwara, M Premachandra of Mawathagama, Abeyratne of Yapahuwa, D. M Jayathilake of Kuliyapitiya and Sunil Ranjan Jayakody of Polgahawela were difficultas for they expected the police to dance to their tunes. My SP’s were Dudley Von Hagt and Boyagoda in Kurunegala, ASP Buckley Silva in Kuliyapitiya and ASP H. A Wickramaratne who later became IGP in Maho district.

Meeting President Jayewardene in Kurunegala in 1978

Not long after assuming duties, President J R Jayewardene visited Kurunegala to view a drama produced by MP Sirisena of Bingiriya at the Town Hall. He arrived at the residence of MP for Kurunegala, D. B Welagedara, to await the time to leave for the Town Hall. I remained within the residence, but out of the view of the president. His security officer, ASP Camillus Abeygoonewardene told me that on the drive to Kurunegala, the president inquired about my background and the accusation that I had been politically partisan in the conduct of my duties at Kelaniya and Kurunegala.

I was reassured that the ASP had denied the accusation saying I was merely performing my duties correctly. A short while later, D. B Welagedara left for the Town Hall to await the arrival of the president. Thereafter, a servant of the household informed me that the president wished to speak to me. I entered and found only the president seated inside the drawing room. He asked me to take a seat, on my greeting him with a salute.

Without wasting time, the president asked, “Is there political interference?” I replied, “Yes, Your Excellency”. He then asked me for details, and I bared all my conflicts with some MPs. The president appeared impressed, and said, “don’t let them interfere; report them to me if they do so again”. I found his sincerity encouraging. It was this experience with the president which later emboldened me to report the Yapahuwa MP Abeyratne to him through the IGP which culminated in the MP apologizing to the entire staff of Maho police station.

Confrontation with MP Panduwasnuwara

Not long after taking charge of the division, I ran into difficulties with MP Ratnayake of Panduwasnuwara. My predecessor, T. B Talwatte, who retired from Kurunegala had agreed to recommend to police headquarters a request by the MP that the entire Panduwasnuwara electorate be brought under the autority of the Hettipola police station. When the file came to me, I studied it intensely and considered that it was not possible to recommend the proposal since on the basis of the MP’s thinking there could be only 160 police stations in the island for 160 electorates. The Panduwasnuwara polling division at the time was covered by four police stations. It would have been impossible for one police station to cover such a vast area. In fact on an objective basis, even four police stations would have been inadequate to provide effective policing for the entire Panduwasnuwara polling district. I therefore reported to DIG R. Sundaralingam in police headquarters that it would not be possible to agree with the proposal. He approved my recommendation and returned papers.

The MP had on his own found out that his proposal had not found favour. Therefore, when I telephoned him to break the news, he spoke to me rudely; but I did not agree to help him with regard to his proposal. I served in Kurunegala for exactly one year before being transferred out, and during that period, the MP’s relations with me were extremely cold. On conducting discreet inquiries about the obsession with his proposal, I gathered that OIC Hettipola was a pliant type, and that the MP wanted him to control the entire Panduwasnuwara polling district so that he could be used to make life uncomfortable for all his political rivals within the district.

Confrontation with MP Abeyratne of Yapahuwa.

Not long afterwards, I encountered difficulties with MP Abeyratne of Yapahuwa. His usual habit was to call up police officers including the ASP and abuse them in public. Some officers in order to lessen their mental pain, had made entries at police stations about such instances. I called for extracts of entries made by police officers who had suffered insults in public leveled at them by the MP and made a report to IGP Ana Seneviratne revealing details of his excessive conduct. I also requested that the report be forwarded to the president.

MP Abeyratne had found out through his own sources that I had despatched a report to the IGP to be forwarded to the president. Not long afterwards, the IGP telephoned me one morning and requested me to meet him in his office in Colombo. He further said that the MP would be present and he was prepared to apologize to the police if he had hurt them. I immediately left for police headquarters, and on entering the office of the IGP, found that the MP had already arrived there. I explained to the IGP that I was not prepared to allow my officers to be bullied in such a manner. The MP then said that he was prepared to apologize to the police officers of Maho police station and that he would not harass them in future.

The IGP requested me to accept the MP’s terms. I promised to pick up the MP at his residence the next morning at 8.00 am, and directed ASP Wickramaratne to assemble all police officers of Maho police station, over 50 in number, to enable the MP to address them. I collected the MP the following morning and we arrived together at the police station. I first addressed the officers and said that while standing firm on matters of discipline, I will protect them against insults hurled at them. I further said that the MP had arrived to say “sorry” for what had transpired, and to accept the apology in good grace.

The MP then rose from his seat and said, “Niladhariwaruni, mage athin waradak wuna nam mama avankawa, nihathamaniwa, samawa illanawa” (“officers, I honestly and sincerely request you to forgive me if I have done some wrong to you”). The police officers clapped, and one of them rose from his seat and thanked the MP for his apology. I then took the MP away and dropped him at his residence. The officers of Maho were so relieved that they adjourned to the Rest House and enjoyed themselves. The MP obviously did an ‘about turn’ because he did not wish my report to reach the president. From that day until I left on transfer, the MP left police officers alone. But when the opportunity came his way to take revenge from me in mid-1979, he in concert with a few other MPs worked to secure my transfer out of Kurunegala.

Confrontation with MP Sunil Ranjan Jayakody of Polgahawala

Sunil Ranjan Jayakody had been a private in the army serving as a despatch rider before entering politics. He rode to victory in 1977 on the huge wave that brought the UNP to power. I had ample reports as I took over the Kurunegala division that he desired unbridled power and expected the police to bend to his will at all times. Somewhere in late May 1979 on a Sunday morning, I was reading the newspapers at my residence when I received an anonymous telephone call on my landline. Mobile phones were unknown then. The caller said that there was tension of an unusual nature in Polgahawela where a Buddha statue had been placed at the gate of a kovil on the road leading to MP Jayakody’s residence. I was also told that the police were partisan, and that Sinhalese people, offended about a possible desecration of the statue, had gathered outside the kovil. I realized that communal violence may occur.

I made efforts to contact Dudley Von Hagt, ASP Kurunegala, and was informed that he had left for Polgahawela. OIC Polgahawela, Inspector Henry Dissanayake too had left for the residence of the MP, according to officers of Polgahawela police station. He was a pliant factotum of the MP. I immediately left Kurunegala and arrived at Polgahawela police station. Officers of the station informed me that the ASP and OIC were at the residence of the MP. I think I took one or two constables in my car and left for the Kovil which was on the road leading to the house of the MP. A Buddha statue, about 2ft by2ft, was lying on the steps leading into the kovil. A fair number of Sinhalese had gathered outside. Their comments reflected their hostile mood.

The first thing I did was to have the statue despatched to the police station in my car. Simultaneously the assembled crowd was advised to disperse. I then sent the police officers to fetch the ASP and the OIC who were at the MP’s residence. I also ensured the presence of more police officers at the scene. I asked the ASP and the OIC why they were obliging the MP and consciously abetting him to cause communal disturbances. Several soldiers had died due to a landmine triggered by the LTTE the previous day in Batticaloa, and the MP wanted to exhibit his “patriotism” by creating conditions in Polgahawela for Tamils to be attacked. He obviously desired irate Sinhalese to storm the Kovil and commence clashes.

The ASP and the OIC suggested that the statue be brought back and placed inside the Kovil so that the Sinhala and Tamil communities could enter it to worship together. It surprised me that they chose to ignore the dangers that would arise from such a step. Perhaps they had been more obsessed by a desire to please the MP. I had police resources from outside Polgahawela enlisted to intensify security in the area and returned to Kurunegala. The first thing I did the next day, Monday, was to dispatch a report to police headquarters seeking the immediate transfer of OIC Polgahawela, IP Henry Dissanayake. The order of transfer came a few days afterwards.

The MPs’ who had waited patiently to have me moved out, Abeyratne of Yapahuwa, Ratnayake of Panduwasnuwara, G Premachandra of Mawathagama and Sunil Ranjan Jayakody of Polgahawela now joined hands to agitate for the retention of IP Henry Dissanayake at Polgahawela and for my transfer. The transfer order of OIC Polgahawela stood, but I received transfer orders effective from June 18, 1978 with only two days notice to move out. I had a sense of pride that I stood by professional principles and ethics and said so in my farewell speech to fellow officers. As usual, DIG R. Sundaralingam was a great source of comfort. My transfer was to an insignificant slot in Colombo, away from field work.