Court will decide on victim’s dying declaration:

Varsity student’s death - suspect identified

by Jayampathy JAYASINGHE

Police have identified the suspect who allegedly assaulted student Rajapaksa Susantha Anura Bandara of the Ruhunu University who succumbed to his injuries at the Badulla General Hospital, IGP Mahinda Balasooriya told a media briefing at the Police Headquarters yesterday.

He said the police were not involved in the alleged assault as claimed by the Inter University Students’ Federation.

He said that the suspect involved in the alleged assault was a fellow university student named Basnayake, a JVP activist from the Uva Paranagama area who had gone missing from his home.

According to Bandara’s mother, Mantunga Devalage Violet (47), a resident of Buttala, the suspect had used a pole to assault Susantha Anura Bandara on his head and back while he was in his room at the Ruhunu Campus on June 16. She made a statement yesterday to the CID probing the student’s death.

Bandara’s mother had come to know about the incident when she spoke to her son who was warded at the Badulla hospital.

Her son made this disclosure just a few hours prior to his death on July 22. “All evidence gathered in this connection will be placed when the Magisterial inquiry is taken up.

The court will decide whether it is homicide or a sudden death on the dying declaration given by Susantha Anura Bandara.

According to the JMO’s report, Bandara’s death was due to internal haemorrhage”, the IGP said.

The IGP said that they have probed the background of Basnayake and found him to be a JVP activist. Two teams from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and two special police teams have been deployed to arrest the suspect who is evading arrest. When asked by journalists whether the Inter University Students’ Federation had written to the IGP regarding the assault, he denied any knowledge about it.

He also denied that the police assaulted any students in the Ruhuna University hostel.

He attributed that these rumours were spread by the JVP to create confusion among the public.

He said the incident was a sequel to a clash that had occurred on June 16 between two student factions at the Ruhuna University where the Vice Chancellor of the University was detained by a group of students.

The police had been summoned to rescue those held by the students.

Meanwhile, President Mahinda Rajapaksa has ordered a full probe into the death of the Ruhunu University student, according to the Presidential media unit.