On July 15, 2012, ten underworld gunmen stormed the garden of a JVP Provincial Council member in Katuwana, where a political meeting was being held under the patronage of the current Minister of Health, Nalinda Jayatissa.
The attackers opened fire on a crowd of approximately 80 to 100 JVP members. Nalinda Jayatissa narrowly escaped, but two individuals—including a woman—were killed in the shooting. Julampitiye Amare, a notorious underworld figure from Weeraketiya, Tangalle and a known loyalist of the Rajapaksa regime, was suspected to be behind the attack.
Member of Parliament Anura Kumara Dissanayake publicly accused Julampitiye Amare and alleged that government-affiliated thugs were responsible for the killings.
However, Laxman Hulugalle, then Director General of the Mahinda administration’s National Security Centre, claimed the incident was a consequence of internal conflict within the JVP’s breakaway faction, the Frontline Socialist Party.
The police offered a different narrative. According to a statement published in the Sunday Times on June 24, 2012, the attack stemmed from a longstanding feud between a JVP-linked underworld gang and Julampitiye Amare’s family.
During the 1988–89 insurgency, members of the JVP’s underworld reportedly killed two of Amare’s brothers, sparking deep animosity. Amare is believed to have waited until the Rajapaksas came to power to rise within the criminal hierarchy and exact revenge on the JVP.
Police further reported that in 2011, Amare murdered the brother of a JVP underworld member named Madusanka, who was incarcerated at the time and narrowly escaped an assassination attempt.
Tensions escalated further on July 13, 2012, when the JVP’s official newspaper Lanka published an exposé detailing Amare’s criminal operations. Upon investigating the source of the article, Amare discovered that a resident of Katuwana had provided the information. In retaliation, he began targeting residents of the area.
In 2011, Neluwe Priyantha allegedly attempted to assassinate Julampitiye Amare, reportedly under the direction of JVP-affiliated underworld figure Madushanka. Madushanka, who was imprisoned at the time, had previously been convicted for the murder of Southern Development Authority Chairman Danni Hiththatiya. This account is based on the police narrative.
Eventually, Julampitiye Amare surrendered to the authorities. In 2019, he was sentenced to death for orchestrating the attack on a JVP rally in Katuwana. This legal outcome followed a request by the JVP to the Maithripala–Ranil administration, which conducted an impartial investigation into the incident and ensured Amare was brought before the court.
Today, the JVP forms the governing body. The first reported killing under its administration was that of Lasantha Wickramasekara, Chairman of the Weligama Pradeshiya Sabha. Wickramasekara had assumed office following a contentious political battle with the JVP–Malima coalition. He contested under the SJB banner and prevented the JVP from securing a majority in the Weligama council.
During the council formation process, two JVP MPs went missing. The JVP accused the SJB of orchestrating the abduction in an attempt to derail Wickramasekara’s efforts to establish the council. No police investigation was launched into the alleged kidnappings, although the missing MPs were later found in Unawatuna. Subsequently, a shooting was reported at the residence of a JVP MP, with suspicion falling on Wickramasekara. To date, no formal inquiry has been conducted into this incident.
These events suggest that the JVP government engaged in a violent struggle to assert control over the Weligama Pradeshiya Sabha. Nevertheless, Lasantha Wickramasekara managed to challenge and destabilise what was perceived as a powerful political force JVP government.
Within 24 hours of Wickramasekara’s assassination, the Minister in charge of police claimed that he was involved in underworld activities and that his death was the result of an internal dispute. This statement echoes the response of Mahinda Rajapaksa’s government in 2012 following the attack on the JVP meeting in Katuwana. However, unlike the current situation, Mahinda’s administration produced Julampitiye Amare before the police within a month of the incident.
The JVP government continues to attribute this violence to underworld activity. Yet, without thorough investigations and accountability, this event risks being etched into history as the first political assassination under JVP rule—a dark chapter marked by unanswered questions and unaddressed justice.
