Matara – In a dramatic turn of events, the residence of Basnayake Nilame Dhanan Dishan Gunasekara in Matara was raided by police at approximately 11:00 p.m. yesterday (09), according to reports from Lanka News Web.
The raid was carried out by two teams of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officers led by Police Inspector M.R. Dayananda, who traveled from Colombo to Matara under the cover of night. Notably, the officers conducted the operation without a search warrant.
According to reports, all the officers involved were dressed in civilian attire. When asked to present their identification, they allegedly refused and proceeded to enter the premises without authorization.
At the time of the raid, only the Basnayake Nilame’s 84-year-old mother was present in the house.
Commenting on the incident, the Basnayake Nilame of the Kataragama Devalaya, Dhanan Dishan Gunasekara, stated that neither the Matara Senior Superintendent of Police nor the officer in charge of the Malimbada Police station was informed about the operation.
He further revealed that it was later learned the raid had been conducted based on instructions from higher authorities, following information suggesting that suspended Inspector General of Police (IGP) Deshabandu Tennakoon was allegedly hiding at his residence.
The timing of the incident is particularly significant, as it occurred on the eve of Gunasekara’s scheduled visit to the CID headquarters in Colombo this morning (10) to provide a statement.
