The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has obtained statements from the Vice-Chancellor and the Registrar of the University of Jaffna as part of an ongoing probe into student protests held on Independence Day, during which the national flag was lowered and replaced with a black flag.
CID officers recently visited the university premises to question the two senior officials and formally record their statements.
The investigation follows directions issued earlier by the University Grants Commission (UGC), which instructed the university administration to conduct an internal inquiry into the incident. In response, a committee was appointed comprising the academic in charge of Ethnic Harmony, the Student Disciplinary Officer, and the Chief Security Officer.
The committee’s findings were subsequently submitted to the UGC. According to the report, 30 individuals—including two female students—were identified as having direct involvement in the act of lowering the lion flag and raising a black flag on Sri Lanka’s Independence Day. The incident coincided with black flag protests staged across the North and East by Tamil groups.
Following the completion of the internal inquiry, the Jaffna District Crime Prevention Division initiated a separate police investigation.
Sources said students had raised concerns over the conduct of the investigation, alleging that police officers entered the university campus in a vehicle and questioned senior university officials on-site for several hours.
Authorities have indicated that further statements are expected to be recorded from security personnel who were on duty at the time, as well as from several students identified in connection with the protest.
( Adopted from The Island)