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Kawanthissa, regarded as the largest elephant ever to live in Sri Lanka, died on October 16, 2026. The Director General of Wildlife Conservation had said the tusker was shot around September 23 and treated for several weeks afterwards (here). Amid the public outcry that followed his death, the Walana Central Anti-Corruption Strike Force and wildlife officers arrested a suspect on October 18, and a second suspect was arrested soon after.
Within a day, the arrests had turned into a party-political fight. From the morning of October 19, several media outlets, including state media, and a flood of social media accounts declared that “Kawanthissa was shot by an SLPP (Pohottuwa) Galgamuwa cooperative director.” We checked whether it has been established that an arrested suspect shot Kawanthissa, and what has actually been confirmed about his political links. Here are the posts.
Social Media Posts:
A state television news page, a state newspaper page and a news website page all published the claim with graphics using the Pohottuwa (SLPP) logo. One of them showed an illustration of a man in a shirt bearing the Pohottuwa logo aiming a gun at an elephant. Two of these posts were shared more than 1,000 times. Other posts described the suspect as the “Ahetuwewa Hunugallewa zonal organizer,” and some wrote that his “direct involvement” in the shooting had been “confirmed.”
Facebook 1 | Facebook 2 | Facebook 3
Claim under review: We checked whether it has been confirmed that an arrested suspect shot Kawanthissa, and whether his Pohottuwa (SLPP) link has been confirmed.
Explainer:
Police said the first suspect arrested was a skills development officer attached to the Ahetuwewa Divisional Secretariat. Media reported that when he was arrested on October 18, a foreign-made 12-bore firearm, a muzzle-loading (cap) gun, 24 live cartridges and dried venison were found in his possession (here). Police also said they had received information that he was involved in the earlier shooting of an elephant named “Diana,” but that remains an allegation.
Court records name the two suspects produced before the Maho Magistrate’s Court as Shantha Dharmasiri Rathnayake and Rathnayake Mudiyanselage Lakmal Padmasiri. It was also reported that five more people were arrested with firearms and equipment in the Ahetuwewa area on October 19 (here).
The Court Asked What Evidence Showed the Suspects Fired the Shots
Wildlife officers produced the two suspects before Maho Magistrate Anuradha Senevirathne on October 19. They told the court they suspected that a licensed firearm, used in breach of its license conditions, had been used to shoot Kawanthissa. According to reports, that allegation was directed at Lakmal Padmasiri (Asian Mirror).
Attorney Udaya Rajapaksa, appearing for the first suspect, denied the allegations. He said no scientific examination had been carried out to link the firearm to the shooting, and that officers who came to the village after the public outcry had arrested several licensed firearm holders.
The lawyer for Shantha Dharmasiri Rathnayake said his client was a state officer with 20 years of service who held a firearm for crop protection but had not used it.
When the Magistrate asked what evidence connected the suspects to the shooting, wildlife officers reportedly gave no adequate answer. She remanded the suspects until October 28 and noted that the remand period could not be extended without sufficient reasons (Asian Mirror and here).
A Suspect’s Family Denied the Allegations
On October 19, Shantha Dharmasiri Rathnayake’s wife told the media: “About 15 people came saying they were from Walana. They said he had to admit the wrong, that Kawanthissa had been shot” (here). She said her husband had told them he could not admit to something he had not done, that both of them were government employees, that they had built an elephant fence at great expense, and that the officers had taken away the licensed gun. She asked for an impartial investigation (here).
By the night of October 20, we found no sign that the Police or the Walana unit had responded directly to her allegation. A relative’s claim that an arrested person was assaulted in custody (Newswire) has also not been independently confirmed.
Posts also appeared quoting her as saying “my husband is being pressured,” and accusing the government of using the elephant’s death for politics (Facebook 4). They capture the gist of what she said, but it remains her allegation, not an established fact. Just like the claim that “a Pohottuwa member shot him,” neither the suspect’s innocence nor the claim that he was framed has been established in court.
Court Reporters: No Evidence Was Presented That Day That Either Suspect Shot Kawanthissa
Court reporters who covered the October 19 hearing told us it was revealed in court that Shantha Dharmasiri Rathnayake is a member of the Galgamuwa cooperative board of directors on the Pohottuwa (SLPP) side. Facts were presented through a B report, but, they said, no evidence was placed before the court that day that either suspect had directly shot Kawanthissa, and bail could be granted at a later date if strong evidence was not produced.
Police Media Division
When we asked, the Police Media Division said the main suspect was a skills development officer at the Ahetuwewa Divisional Secretariat, and that the Police were refraining from commenting on his political identity.
Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP)
We asked the SLPP about reports that the remanded main suspect is an SLPP member of the Galgamuwa cooperative board. Party media spokesman Sanjeewa Edirimanne said that people who contest cooperative elections do so from one political party or another, but a cooperative representative cannot be labelled as belonging to a particular party. A cooperative, he said, is not an institution like Parliament, a Provincial Council, or a local council. Someone who wins a cooperative election and joins a cooperative is a cooperative director or board member, not a member of a specific party.
A cooperative society directorship is not a party post. There are, however, cases where party-backed groups contest cooperative board elections. In May 2026, for example, SJB, NPP and Pohottuwa (SLPP) groups were elected to the board of the Hiriyala Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society (Hiru News).
We tried to obtain clarification from the Kurunegala Wildlife Regional Office and the Galgamuwa Range Office, but on October 20 and 21 we could not reach the officers handling the case. We will update this article when we receive their response.
There Is No Evidence That an SJB Member Fired the Shots Either
As the Pohottuwa label spread, posts also appeared pinning the blame on the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB). From as early as October 17, some posts said “UNP/SJB political appointees” in the Department of Wildlife Conservation were responsible for the elephant’s death. A personal account shared a screenshot of a post reading “It’s someone from the SJB media unit who shot Kawanthissa,” and added that even if SJB people “didn’t fire directly, they must have helped from behind the scenes” (Facebook 5). None of these posts say who that “media unit” person is or what the evidence is.
From October 18, several more posts used a graphic describing the man arrested with a stock of firearms at Kirindiwela on October 17 as “SJB MP Harshana Rajakaruna’s brother,” and asked, “Were these used to hunt Kawanthissa?” (Facebook 6). We found no official or media report linking the Kirindiwela incident to the Kawanthissa investigation. We have separately shown that the “brother” label in that graphic is misleading (here).
As of October 21, neither the Police, the Department of Wildlife Conservation, court records nor media reports have said that the two suspects produced in court, or the five others arrested on October 19, are SJB members or linked to the SJB media unit.
Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB)
When we asked, the SJB media division also confirmed to us that the circulating post was completely false.
Several Investigations Are Under Way Into the Cause of Death and Responsibility
To establish the exact cause of Kawanthissa’s death scientifically, samples from the carcass have been sent to the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science of the University of Peradeniya (Hiru News). The Ministry of Environment has asked the Inspector General of Police and the Criminal Investigation Department to investigate whether an organized group targeting elephants is at work (Sri Lanka Guardian).
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has appointed a six-member expert committee chaired by former ministry secretary A.H. Sarath Wijesinghe. Its tasks are to examine the direct and indirect causes of the elephant’s death and the shortcomings in his treatment, to prepare a standard procedure for the welfare of wild elephants, and to recommend a national elephant conservation programme. It must report to the President within 30 days (here).
The committee held its first meeting at the Presidential Secretariat on October 21, where it reviewed the circumstances of the death and the Department of Wildlife Conservation’s response, and discussed setting up a rapid-response veterinary unit for injured elephants (Daily Mirror).
The Environment Minister Took Responsibility; the Opposition Accused the Government
On October 20, a group of environmentalists protested outside the Ministry of Environment in Battaramulla demanding “justice for Kawanthissa.” In Parliament that day, Environment Minister Dr. Dammika Patabendi said he took responsibility in the Kawanthissa matter.
He said the elephant had died of injuries caused by gunshots, that veterinary specialists in Thailand and India had been consulted in the effort to save him, and that an investigation was under way into whether an organized conspiracy lay behind the death.
SLPP National Organizer and MP Namal Rajapaksa told Parliament the same day that the elephant’s gunshot injuries had gone unattended for a month and a half, and that the government had handed out firearms while telling people to shoot animals that came onto their land. He was not reported to have commented on the suspect’s party links.
What Happened, and What Should Happen Next
On the information available so far, three positions have emerged. Wildlife officers suspect that a licensed firearm, used in breach of its license conditions, was used to shoot the elephant. The suspects’ lawyers and families say licensed firearm holders were rounded up after the public outcry, and that no scientific link between the firearm and the shooting has been shown. The Ministry of Environment is also examining whether an organized group was involved. None of this has yet been proved in court.
The case is due to be called again on October 28. The Magistrate has ordered a detailed report for that date on how each suspect was involved, the date and time, the scientific evidence, and any eyewitnesses. Evidence from the elephant’s body and scientific tests on the suspects’ firearms will be decisive. If sufficient evidence is not produced, the suspects may be granted bail; if it is, charges may be filed under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance. The Peradeniya test results and the Presidential committee’s report are also awaited.
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Conclusion:
Posts claiming that Kawanthissa was shot by a Pohottuwa (SLPP) member are misleading. Court reporters say one arrested suspect sits on the Galgamuwa cooperative board on the SLPP side, but neither the Police nor the SLPP has officially confirmed this, and the SLPP says a cooperative post is not a party post. More importantly, there was no evidence that either suspect shot Kawanthissa was placed before the Maho Magistrate’s Court on October 19, and the Magistrate herself asked what that evidence was. Calling a suspect “the man who shot Kawanthissa” assigns guilt before trial.
Posts claiming that Kawanthissa was shot by someone from the SJB media unit, or by an SJB member, have no basis at all. The SJB media division confirmed to us that the post is false, and no police, wildlife, court, or media record links any of the arrested men to the SJB.
This is a developing story. We will update this article after the October 28 hearing and when the scientific test results are released.
