The Memorial of the First Fallen Police Officer of Sri Lanka or Tuan Sabhan Memorial (Sinhala: පොලිස් සේවයේදී දිවිදුන් ප්රථම නිළධාරියාගේ ස්මාරකය) is located in Mawanella town near the Old Brick Bridge in Kegalle District, Sri Lanka.
The memorial has been erected to commemorate Police Constable Tuan Sabhan who sacrificed his life for the people and the Police Force under the British rulers. He was killed on 21 March 1864 during an operation to apprehend a suspect named Deekirikevage Saradiel (1832-1864), popularly known among people as Utuwankande Sura Saradiel (Wijetunga, 1984). Constable Sabhan succumbed to injuries from a gunshot fired by Mammamale Marikkar, an accomplice of Saradiel (Wijetunga, 1984). This incident is the first time in police history that a fully authorised Police officer has died while on active duty.
On 3 September 1866, the Police force was formally established and Constable Sabhan’s sacrifice two years before this is said to have given an impetus to its establishment. In remembrance of Constable Sabhan, March 21 has been named by the government as Police Heroes’ Day.
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Attribution
References
1) Wijetunga, W.M.K., 1984. Saradiel, The Social Bandit. Vidyodaya J. Arts, Sci., Lett., Siver Jubilee. pp.171-183.
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This page was last updated on 29 November 2023