1915 Sinhalese-Muslim riots

During the suppression of the rebellion, colonial forces supplemented by European auxiliaries carried out numerous summary executions and other repressive measures in an attempt to put an end to the riots.

16 of 1865, which forbade the beating of tom-tom drums at any time, within any town, without a license issued by the government, with punishment that included fines or imprisonment for up to three months.

The Indian Moors objected to the Police on the Buddhist Perahera (religious pageant) procession from the Wallahagoda Dewala traveling through Ambegamuwa Street en route to the Mahaweli River past their newly built mosque with music, even though older mosques along the same route belonging to Ceylon Moors did not object.

La Brooy in the District Court of Kandy on 30 September 1913 against the Attorney General for a declaration of rights granted under the treaty of the Kandyan Convention.

After review evidence, the District Judge gave his judgement in favor of the Temple trustees citing that its rights were protected under the terms of the Kandyan Convention.

On the insistence of the Government Agent, the Attorney General Anton Bertram, KC, referred the judgement to the Supreme Court of Ceylon.

The case was heard in February 1915, by the bench of Justices Walter Shaw and Thomas De Sampayo, Bertram with James Van Langenberg, KC, Solicitor General and V. M. Fernando, Crown Counsel representing the crown and Benjamin Bawa, KC with E. W. Perera and D. R. Wijewardena represented the Basnayaka Nilame.

[10][17] The following day, the 29 May rumors spread around the city after some Indian Moors claim to have a group of Afghan fighters coming up from Colombo to raze to the ground the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in Kandy, which was the holiest of places of worship for the Buddhist in the island.

[18] The first bloodshed of the riots was reported when an Indian Moor shot dead an eighteen year old Sinhalese boy in Colombo Street, in Kandy and the shooter was not arrested by the policemen who witnessed it.

In the morning of 30 May several leading gentlemen of Kandy, Dunuwille Dissawa, Advocate Arthur Perera and Cudah Ratwatte met with Vaughan, the Government Agent and IGP Dowbiggin.

The lack of police action aggravated the rioting, the presence of the Punjabi soldiers deterred the rioters, who dispersed to other parts by foot and train, along the railway line to Rambukkan, Polgashawela, Alawwa, Ambepussa, Meerigama, Veyangoda, Henaratgoda and Kelaniya towards Colombo.

Soon the crowds spread from Maradana to other parts of the city, specially Pettah were fights ensued with the large number of Moors who owned many of the shops there.

[2] Large crowds were involved in the attacks on the Moors; mobs of over a thousand were reported at Matale, Wattegama, Kadugannawa, Gampola, Rambukkana, Panadura, Godapitiya and Akuressa.

To this end on 2 June 1915, Chalmers declared that the Western Province was subjected to martial law and under the control of Brigadier General Malcolm.

[25][9] Officer Commanding the Troops, Brigadier Malcolm ordered the police and the military to shoot any one who they deemed a rioter without a trial.

With the streets cleared of rioters, uniformed police and the military enforced curfews in cities and towns, shooting any one that violated it, soon they began expanding their operations to the rural areas.

F. B. Walgampahe, Basnayaka Nilame (the Lay Chief) of the Ancient Temple of Gadaladeniya, Gampola was taken in to custody by Punjabi soldiers and was found dead on arrival in Kandy.

These included F. R. Senanayake, D. S. Senanayake (later the first prime minister of Ceylon), D. B. Jayatilaka, W. A. de Silva, F. R. Dias Bandaranaike, E. T. de Silva, Dr Casius Ferreira, C. Batuvantudawe, D. P. A. Wijewardene, John de Silva, W. H. W. Perera, Martinus Perera, John M. Senivaratne, Arthur V. Dias, H. Amarasurya, D. E. Weerasuriya, Reverent G. D. Lanerolle, E. A. P. Wijeyeratne, Harry Mel, A. H. E. Molamure, A. E. Goonesinha, Battaramulla Unanse — a monk, Edmund Hewavitharana and Dr C. A. Hewavitharatne, the brothers of Anagarika Dharmapala, who was also interned in Calcutta, where he had been during the unrest.

The colonial authorities suspected the temperance movement led by educated middle class Ceylonese to be supporting the Germans in World War I that was raging at the time.

Thousands were arrested in some cases whole villages, its men, women and boys, on charges of looting and being in possession of stolen property, and no bail allowed.

These Special Commissioners were mostly Government Agents or Military Officers who had powers to threaten penalties to gain information about the riots.

They gained valuation of damage and looted items by the Moors themselves and demanded compensation from the local Sinhalese, failure of payment to the Riot Fund resulted in arrest and subjected to courts-martial.

It was chaired by James Peiris, and Dr Solomon Fernando made a strong speech demanding inquiry by a Royal Commission; at its conclusion he collapsed and died on the stage.

[43] A secret memorandum initiated and drafted by James Peiris to the Secretary of State for the Colonies, pleading for the repeal of martial law and describing atrocities claimed to have been committed by the colonial authorities was carried in the soles of the shoes braving mine and submarine-infested seas (as well as the Ceylon Police Force) by E. W. Perera, a lawyer from Kotte.

In September 1915, Brigadier Malcolm was transferred to the western front as a Brigade Commander in the British Expeditionary Force where he served unit December 1915.

The 28th Punjabis regiment was transferred to the Middle Eastern theatre by January 1916 where they was to take part in the Mesopotamian campaign, suffering a total of 1,423 casualties by the end of the war.

Sir John Anderson who succeeded Chalmers as Governor appointed a Commission on October 26, 1916, to inquire into and report upon the circumstances connected with the shooting of L Romanis Perera, Telenis Appu, Podi Sinno, James Bass, Juvanis Fernando, W G Serahamy, Pugoda Peter, Uduwa Arachchi and Juwanis Appu.

"[6] After 1915 a number of Sinhalese leaders gradually emerged from the educated middle class, who were to leave an indelible mark on the political life of the country.

[34] The event also led to a major distrust between the Tamil and the Moor community[40] who shared a common native language and strong cultural traditions.

Also Muslims would side up with the Sinhalese against the indigenous Tamils to protect their political turf and business interests in the later ethnic conflict that would take place between the two communities after the country's independence.