Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) Leader Udaya Gammanpila has alleged that Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera was forcibly stripped of his monastic attire and made to wear a prison uniform while in custody at Welikada Prison.
Addressing a press conference in Colombo today (12), dressed in black, Gammanpila claimed that the incident had taken place despite strong objections from both Gnanasara Thera and the prison officers involved.
Gammanpila stated that he visited Welikada Prison on October 8 at the request of Gnanasara Thera, during which the monk had explained the circumstances surrounding the incident.
According to Gammanpila, a similar incident occurred in 2018, when prison officers attempted to dress Gnanasara Thera in prison attire but abandoned the effort following his objections.
However, he alleged that on this occasion, several prison officers had joined together to forcibly dress the monk in a prison uniform despite his resistance.
“Unlike in 2018, when officers abandoned the attempt following the Thera’s objections, this time a large number of officers gathered and attempted to forcibly dress him in prison attire,” Gammanpila said.
He further alleged that a prison officer had activated the camera on his mobile phone during the incident, allowing an individual at another location to observe and possibly supervise what was taking place.
“One officer activated the camera on his mobile phone, allowing someone, possibly an influential person at another location, to watch and supervise the attempt to forcibly dress the Thera in prison attire,” he claimed.
Gammanpila also accused senior leaders of the National People’s Power (NPP) of exerting pressure to ensure that Gnanasara Thera was made to wear the prison uniform.
“We state with great responsibility that Gnanasara Thera was made to wear the prison uniform due to pressure from senior NPP leaders, despite strong objections from both the Thera and the officers,” he alleged.
He further claimed that Gnanasara Thera had become deeply distressed during the incident and had thrown his monastic undergarment upwards when officers attempted to take it from him, causing it to become caught in a rotating ceiling fan.
Gammanpila reiterated his allegation that the incident had occurred due to pressure from higher authorities, despite objections from those involved.
The allegations made by Gammanpila have not been independently verified. (Newswire)