IUSF convener, 57 others arrested for entering Education Ministry

Thalangama Police arrested 57 individuals including the Convener of the Inter-University Students’ Federation (IUSF) Wasantha Mudalige and 48 student Buddhist monks for forcibly entering the Education Ministry premises yesterday.

A group of students of the Buddhist and Pali University staged a protest in front of the Education Ministry in Battaramulla demanding the re-opening of the University for the academic activities and the release of the arrested student union activists.

According to the police media spokesman, the students had forcibly entered the ministry premises and had behaved violently inside the ministry.

They were arrested by the police while staging a protest near the office of the Education Ministry.

The Education Ministry commenting on this incident said that a group of university students led by Wasantha Mudalige entered the premises without any prior notice yesterday and behaved aggressively.

Accordingly, they were arrested by the police in order to take legal action against them, the ministry said.

The issues in this university were extensively discussed in a meeting participated by the University Board, University Teachers’ Federation, the Education Minister and the Ministry Secretary last week.