{"id":4639,"date":"2025-03-18T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-18T11:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/atita.org\/?p=4639"},"modified":"2025-03-18T09:45:29","modified_gmt":"2025-03-18T04:15:29","slug":"wilpattu-deer-shooting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/","title":{"rendered":"Wilpattu Deer Shooting"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Published: March 18, 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>March 18, 1957<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A royal visit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">March 1957 was marked by the visit of a royal couple to Ceylon: King Mahendra and Queen Ratna of Nepal. The royals toured the island visiting several places.<span id='easy-footnote-1-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-1-4639' title='\u201cKing Presents Rs. 5000 to Maligawa Fund,\u201d &lt;em&gt;Ceylon Daily News&lt;\/em&gt;, March 16, 1957; \u201cKing Firm Believer in Panchasila,\u201d &lt;em&gt;Ceylon Daily News&lt;\/em&gt;, March 14, 1957; \u201cKing and Queen Spend Night in Sacred City,\u201d &lt;em&gt;Ceylon Daily News&lt;\/em&gt;, March 18, 1957. Hereafter, &amp;#8220;&lt;em&gt;Ceylon Daily News&lt;\/em&gt;&amp;#8221; will be abbreviated as &amp;#8220;&lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;.&amp;#8221;'><sup>1<\/sup><\/a><\/span> At the foot of Sri Pada, Mahendra told an audience that Buddhist teachings were as relevant as ever in a time when \u201cmutual hates and fears have infected man so much that he now appears to be his own enemy.\u201d<span id='easy-footnote-2-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-2-4639' title='\u201c\u2018Man (His Own Foe) Needs Message of the Buddha\u2019,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, March 18, 1957.'><sup>2<\/sup><\/a><\/span> What he did not realize was that he, or more precisely, his actions, would soon become the center of Buddhist controversy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-image aligncenter uagb-block-b9cfcb59 wp-block-uagb-image--layout-default wp-block-uagb-image--effect-static wp-block-uagb-image--align-center\"><figure class=\"wp-block-uagb-image__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image.jpg ,https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image.jpg 780w, https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 150px\" src=\"https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image.jpg\" alt=\"Mahendra of Nepal, 1957\" class=\"uag-image-4644\" width=\"400\" height=\"637\" title=\"Mahendra of Nepal, 1957\" loading=\"lazy\" role=\"img\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">King Mahendra of Nepal, 1957<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On March 16, in Polonnaruwa, the king had requested to see wildlife. That night, he was taken to Manampitiya, but he only saw three deer and was underwhelmed. He asked for a spot that had more wildlife, and being an avid hunter, he wanted to shoot some. After a discussion with the Nepalese military secretary, police recommended the Wilpattu Game Sanctuary. Decisional authority was in the hands of ASP Henry Corea, who was now in a difficult position. On the one hand, he could accede to the king\u2019s request, but he would be violating fundamental Buddhist tenets by allowing an animal to be so wantonly killed. On the other hand, he could spurn the king\u2019s request, though this would mean an embarrassing rejection of a royal\u2019s wishes. He chose the former.<span id='easy-footnote-3-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-3-4639' title='&amp;#8220;&lt;em&gt;Agam\u00e6ti Andamanda Ka\u1e37a Vesakd\u0101 Muva Da\u1e0dayama&lt;\/em&gt;,\u201d [The Deer Hunt in Vesak that Befuddled the Prime Minister]&lt;em&gt; Lankadeepa&lt;\/em&gt;, May 16, 2018. &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/www.lankadeepa.lk\/diyatha_news\/%E0%B6%85%E0%B6%9C%E0%B6%B8%E0%B7%90%E0%B6%AD%E0%B7%92-%E0%B6%85%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%AF%E0%B6%B8%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%AF-%E0%B6%9A%E0%B7%85-%E0%B7%80%E0%B7%99%E0%B7%83%E0%B6%9A%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%AF%E0%B7%8F-%E0%B6%B8%E0%B7%94%E0%B7%80-%E0%B6%AF%E0%B6%A9%E0%B6%BA%E0%B6%B8\/48-528631&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;noreferrer noopener&quot;&gt;https:\/\/www.lankadeepa.lk\/diyatha_news\/%E0%B6%85%E0%B6%9C%E0%B6%B8%E0%B7%90%E0%B6%AD%E0%B7%92-%E0%B6%85%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%AF%E0%B6%B8%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%AF-%E0%B6%9A%E0%B7%85-%E0%B7%80%E0%B7%99%E0%B7%83%E0%B6%9A%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%AF%E0%B7%8F-%E0%B6%B8%E0%B7%94%E0%B7%80-%E0%B6%AF%E0%B6%A9%E0%B6%BA%E0%B6%B8\/48-528631&lt;\/a&gt;.'><sup>3<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Wilpattu<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The next evening, Corea received a letter of authority from the permanent secretary to the home ministry to give to the game warden to enter Wilpattu, and following dinner, Mahendra arrived at the sanctuary. Accompanied by Corea and the minister of cultural affairs, Jayaweera Kuruppu, he brought with him a gun. Mahendra\u2019s jeep was in the front so that the other jeeps would not frighten away animals before he could see them, and Corea was in the jeep with him. In the early hours of March 18, they came across a stag in the moonlight. As the stag moved away, Mahendra shot it dead. Fearing the backlash from the shooting, the party hid the deer in a bush and later placed the carcass in police custody. After he left the park, Mahendra went to Anuradhapura where he asked to have the deer\u2019s head and antlers sent to him in Nepal as a trophy. Word had spread in the town that a deer was shot at Wilpattu, and by the evening, pressmen were asking the police about the shooting and publishing the story in the papers.<span id='easy-footnote-4-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-4-4639' title='\u201cPolice Report on the Deer Incident,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, March 30, 1957.'><sup>4<\/sup><\/a><\/span> The next day, some papers carried reports that Mahendra shot a deer at Wilpattu.<span id='easy-footnote-5-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-5-4639' title='Parliamentary Debates (Senate), vol. 10, col. 1400.'><sup>5<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"571\" src=\"https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image-1.jpg\" alt=\"A spotted deer stag at Wilpattu\" class=\"wp-image-4664\" srcset=\"https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image-1.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image-1-300x171.jpg 300w, https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image-1-768x439.jpg 768w, https:\/\/atita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image-1-18x10.jpg 18w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A spotted deer stag at Wilpattu. [Source: <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/photosofsrilanka\/7439294160\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Dhammika Heenpella<\/a><\/em>, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/2.0\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CC-BY-SA 2.0<\/a><\/em>, <em>via Flickr<\/em>.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The dead deer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The episode proved to be painful to the Buddhist public. That a king from the country where the Buddha himself was born, accompanied by a minister who was seen as the guardian of Buddha Jayanti celebrations, shot a sacred animal like a deer was unpalatable.<span id='easy-footnote-6-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-6-4639' title='\u201cDeer, O Deer!\u201d &lt;em&gt;Ceylon Observer&lt;\/em&gt;, March 23, 1957, quoted in Parliamentary Debates (Senate), vol. 10, col. 1400 \u2013 1401.'><sup>6<\/sup><\/a><\/span> The visit was in contravention of the park rules, which stipulated that nighttime visitors were prohibited. <span id='easy-footnote-7-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-7-4639' title='\u201cPolice Report on the Deer Incident,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, March 30, 1957.'><sup>7<\/sup><\/a><\/span> However, the principal target of their fury was not the king, but Kuruppu.<span id='easy-footnote-8-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-8-4639' title='\u201cBhikkhu Blames the Minister,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, March 27, 1957; \u201cCulture Minister Blamed for Deer Episode,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, April 8, 1957.'><sup>8<\/sup><\/a><\/span> A ratepayer\u2019s association in Anuradhapura called for Kuruppu\u2019s resignation and \u201cdeterrent action\u201d against Corea.<span id='easy-footnote-9-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-9-4639' title='\u201cSequel to Deer Shooting: \u2018Resolution\u2019 by Ratepayers,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, April 1, 1957.'><sup>9<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At first, Kuruppu denied that the king shot a deer.<span id='easy-footnote-10-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-10-4639' title='\u201cDead Deer Denial,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, March 27, 1957.'><sup>10<\/sup><\/a><\/span> However, this was hardly believed. The <em>Ceylon Observer<\/em> carried an editorial that accused Kuruppu of a \u201ccasual, almost brusque, denial\u201d and laid the responsibility squarely on him and the police.<span id='easy-footnote-11-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-11-4639' title='\u201cDeer, O Deer!\u201d &lt;em&gt;Ceylon Observer&lt;\/em&gt;, March 23, 1957, quoted in Parliamentary Debates (Senate), vol. 10, col. 1400 \u2013 1401.'><sup>11<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Its sister paper, the <em>Ceylon Daily News<\/em>, further alleged that the deer had been quartered and shared among a police officer involved in the shooting, a high-ranking police officer, a protocol officer of the ministry of external affairs, and an official of the ministry of cultural affairs. It also alleged that Kuruppu himself was present at the carving of the deer.<span id='easy-footnote-12-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-12-4639' title='\u201cThat Deer \u2013 Who Shared the Spoils?\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, March 30, 1957.'><sup>12<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bandaranaike was furious at Corea. His secretary, Bradman Weerakoon, later recounted that he had seldom seen the prime minister \u201cas indignant as when he reprimanded ASP Henry Corea.\u201d<span id='easy-footnote-13-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-13-4639' title='Bradman Weerakoon, &lt;em&gt;Rendering Unto Caesar: A Fascinating Story of One Man\u2019s Tenure Under Nine Prime Ministers and Presidents of Sri Lanka&lt;\/em&gt;, (Berkshire: New Dawn Press, 2004), 16.'><sup>13<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Corea later released a police report detailing the official version of incidents, prefacing it with an apology.<span id='easy-footnote-14-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-14-4639' title='\u201cPolice Report on the Deer Incident,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, March 30, 1957.'><sup>14<\/sup><\/a><\/span> With mounting reports of his commission of a sacrilege during the Buddha Jayanti, Mahendra too apologized for the shooting.<span id='easy-footnote-15-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-15-4639' title='\u201cKing Apologises for Hunting Deer,\u201d &lt;em&gt;The Guardian&lt;\/em&gt;, April 3, 1957.'><sup>15<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Opponents of the government used the opportunity to denigrate the SLFP. The UNP summoned an emergency meeting on account of the \u201cwanton shooting of a deer at Wilpattu Sanctuary in desecration of the Buddha Jayanti year.\u201d <span id='easy-footnote-16-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-16-4639' title='\u201cU.N.P. and the Deer,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, March 30, 1957.'><sup>16<\/sup><\/a><\/span> K. M. P. Rajaratna, the notoriously pro-Buddhist MP of Welimada who had defected from the government six month earlier, too launched criticism. He recounted that the Arahat Mahinda, who introduced Buddhism to the country, prevented King Devanampiyatissa from shooting a deer, yet the culture minister allowed a Hindu king to shoot one during the Buddha Jayanti. At the same meeting, a Buddhist monk chided Rajaratna, reminding attendees of the UNP\u2019s roast calf incident in 1954, and called for people not to mix religion with politics.<span id='easy-footnote-17-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-17-4639' title='\u201cSri Pada Chief Monk Atacks Rajaratna and \u2018Deer\u2019 Critics,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, April 2, 1957.'><sup>17<\/sup><\/a><\/span> The <em>mahanayake<\/em> of Malwatte also referred to Buddhist consternation over the killing as \u201cmaking a mountain out of a molehill.\u201d<span id='easy-footnote-18-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-18-4639' title='\u201cP. M. Explains Deer Incident,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, April 3, 1957.'><sup>18<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Eventually, public and political criticism over the shooting led to an apology from the education minister, Wijayananda Dahanayake, at a meeting sponsored by the Ceylon Humanitarian Society. He issued several questions to the Lake House Press regarding the complicity of Mahendra\u2019s accompaniers and his possession of a gun. He alleged that a certain police official, likely Corea, had failed in his duty and was hiding behind the <em>Daily News<\/em>\u2019 editorials.<span id='easy-footnote-19-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-19-4639' title='\u201cDahanayake Says \u2018Sorry\u2019 for Deer Incident,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, April 2, 1957.'><sup>19<\/sup><\/a><\/span> On April 2, the prime minister addressed the shooting in parliament. He read a letter from Mahendra\u2019s secretary outlining the sequence of events that led to it and explained that Kuruppu\u2019s initial denial was to avoid implicating a distinguished guest like the Nepalese king in a crime most foul. But, to show the government\u2019s resolve, he announced that the issuance of sport hunting licenses would be suspended for the remainder of the year.<span id='easy-footnote-20-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-20-4639' title='\u201cP. M. Explains Deer Incident,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, April 3, 1957.'><sup>20<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By mid-April, the issue had left public and political attention. The <em>Daily News<\/em>, ordinarily not sympathetic to the prime minister, commended his defense of Kuruppu, which was apparently so robust that it \u201cwould have been difficult even for the most suspicious critic to pick holes in it.\u201d<span id='easy-footnote-21-4639' class='easy-footnote-margin-adjust'><\/span><span class='easy-footnote'><a href='https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/#easy-footnote-bottom-21-4639' title='\u201cThere\u2019s No Need for \u2018No Quorum\u2019 Cry,\u201d &lt;em&gt;CDN&lt;\/em&gt;, April 6, 1957.'><sup>21<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Attention returned to the more pressing Jayanti issue, the language question, but the deer shooting was nonetheless a major embarrassment for a government claiming to represent Buddhist interests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bibliography<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"hanging-indent wp-block-paragraph\">Weerakoon, Bradman. <em>Rendering Unto Caesar: A Fascinating Story of One Man\u2019s Tenure Under Nine Prime Ministers and Presidents of Sri Lanka<\/em>. Berkshire: New Dawn Press, 2004.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Footnotes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>March 18, 1957: An illicit shooting of a deer by King Mahendra of Nepal at Wilpattu results in Buddhist uproar.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4639","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Wilpattu Deer Shooting - Atita<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/atita.org\/si\/articles\/wilpattu-deer-shooting\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"si_LK\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Wilpattu Deer Shooting - 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