Police CI suspended, two transferred over inaction in Kandy schoolgirl abduction

Sri Lanka Police have suspended a Chief Inspector and transferred two other officers in relation to the recent incident of the abduction of an 18-year-old Muslim schoolgirl in the Hapugahayata Thenna area of Davulagala, Kandy.

The decision follows allegations of dereliction of duty of the officers in question, police said.

The suspended Chief Inspector of Police had been serving as the Acting Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the Davulagala Police Station at the time of the incident. Additionally, a Woman Chief Inspector of Police and a Sub-Inspector (SI) have been transferred to other police stations.  

The Woman Chief Inspector has been assigned to the Kadugannawa Police Station, while the Sub-Inspector, who served as the Crimes OIC of the police station, has been transferred to the Velamboda Police Station.  

The disciplinary measures were ordered by Senior DIG Lalith Pathinayake, who is in charge of the Central Province. These actions come in the wake of an internal investigation into the incident, which took place on January 19, according to police.

According to reports, an officer attached to Gampola Police, who was passing by the scene during the abduction, had informed the Davulagala Police Operations Room regarding the incident. However, Davulagala Police had allegedly failed to respond to the alert, leading to the current disciplinary actions.