Metal detector shows elephant ‘Sita’ was shot with live bullets

A metal detector has indicated that the injured elephant ‘Sita’ of Mahiyangana Perahera had been shot with live bullets.

This piece of information came to light following a scan conducted on Tuesday (Oct. 03), Prof. Ashoka Dangolla of Peradeniya University’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science mentioned.

The 48-year-old elephant was ‘mistakenly’ shot by an officer of the Civil Security Department (CSD) after the Mahiyanganaya Rajamaha Vihara annual Perahera on Saturday morning (Sept. 30).

Prof. Dangolla, speaking further on the matter, said it is now clear that ‘Sita’ shot with live bullets and that several fragments of metal are inert in the 7 wounds the elephant has sustained.

“We are sure that these are live bullets. These should be removed, but we have yet to take a decision.”

It was reported that following the procession, the elephant had been tied to a tree near the banks of the Mahaweli River, where the officer in question had shot ‘Sita’ after mistaking it for a wild elephant that had crossed the river. The incident took place at around 3.30 a.m.

The mahout, who said he was having breakfast when the incident happened, accused the officer of shooting the elephant despite people telling him that ‘Sita’ was not a wild elephant.

The injured 48-year-old elephant was later treated by veterinary surgeons of the Wildlife Conservation Department.

In a statement, the Director General of the Wildlife Conservation Department, M.G.C. Sooriyabandara had said that one of the wildlife officers at the site had mistakenly fired ‘rubber bullets’ at the female elephant ‘Sita’ in a bid to scare off the wild elephants in the vicinity.

On Sunday (Oct. 01), the Defence Ministry explained that as elephants from different parts of the country participate in the annual Mahiyangana Perahera, the chief prelate of the Mahiyangana temple had requested the Wildlife Department to establish a wildlife team in the temple to drive out wild elephants as there is frequent roaming of these animals in the area.

In response to the request, a team of Wildlife Department officers along with one CSD personnel had been entrusted to drive away the wild elephants.

Accordingly, the Defence Ministry said it has initiated a formal internal investigation on the directives of Acting Defence Minister Premitha Bandara Tennakoon.

The ministry has promised to take disciplinary action against the CSD personnel for misconduct if he was found to have committed any disciplinary offense while on duty.