Justice and National Integration Minister Harshana Nanayakkara today (4 August) said there are suspicions that the recent unrest at Mahara Prison may have been part of an organised conspiracy aimed at destabilising Sri Lanka’s prison system.
Making a special statement in Parliament, the Minister said authorities had received information suggesting that similar incidents could spread to other prisons and that the Government was closely monitoring the situation.
He said the necessary coordination was already underway to ensure that any further incidents are brought under control while minimising the risk of loss of life.
Nanayakkara further revealed that prison authorities had been alerted to intelligence indicating that similar unrest could occur at two or three other prisons.
While describing the incident at Negombo Prison as a dispute among inmates linked to narcotics, the Minister said the violence at Mahara Prison appeared to be an organised act directed against the prison administration.
He said the coordinated nature of the violence, involving nearly 1,000 inmates allegedly setting fire to prison property simultaneously, raised suspicions of an organised group operating behind the incident. He warned that if such a conspiracy is uncovered, all those responsible would face legal action.
The Minister also stressed that the property destroyed during the unrest had been built using public funds and that reconstruction would also have to be financed by taxpayers, urging inmates to recognise the consequences of such acts.
Meanwhile, a special committee has been appointed to investigate the Mahara Prison incident. The committee is chaired by Minister Nanayakkara and includes Minister Ananda Wijepala, secretaries to the relevant ministries, and representatives from the Police, the Government Analyst’s Department and the Attorney General’s Department.
