Government urged to prevent encroachment on historic sacred land of Thissa Vihara
13-Aug-2026.
The National Heritage Protection Centre has urged the Government to intervene immediately and provide an appropriate solution to prevent attempts to encroach upon the historically significant sacred land belonging to the Thissa Vihara in Kankesanthurai, Jaffna, and to construct a new road through the premises.
Ven. Galagama Kusaladhamma Thera, Secretary of the committee appointed to study the declining Buddhist heritage sites in the Northern and Eastern Provinces and a representative of the National Heritage Protection Centre, made this observation while speaking at a press conference held in Colombo on August 11, on the advice of Ven. Medagoda Abhayatissa Nayake Thera, Chairman of the National Heritage Protection Centre.
Speaking further, he said that the issue concerning the Kankesanthurai Thissa Vihara and its historical antiquity had been clarified on several occasions. According to the prevailing legal position, it has been established that there are no privately owned plots of land within the Thissa Vihara premises, a position that has also been acknowledged by the Minister in charge of Buddhist Affairs.
Against this backdrop, attempts are reportedly being made to forcibly construct a new road through the central area of the Thissa Vihara. Following the lifting of the injunction obtained by the Pallali Police from the Mallakam Magistrate’s Court against Valikamam North Pradeshiya Sabha Chairman Somasundaran Sugindhan and Secretary Sivakumaran Sivanandan, the Pradeshiya Sabha has once again adopted a resolution to construct a road through the land.
In an official letter sent to the Chairman of the Valikamam North Pradeshiya Sabha by Ven. Pussallawa Somavisuddhi Nayake Thera, Maha Lekhakadhikari of the Amarapura Sri Kalyanawansa Nikaya, the historical evidence relating to the Thissa Vihara has been clearly set out. References to the vihara can also be found in historical works written by Tamil scholars, including Historical Evidence of Jaffna, The Hidden North and Ancient Jaffna.
Furthermore, the 1971 town survey map, the 1959 map and a response report submitted by the Jaffna Government Agent to the Maha Parapathy Officer in 1954 clearly establish that a Buddhist vihara had existed at the site, that approximately 14 acres of land belonged to the vihara, and that there were no privately owned lands within the premises.
At a meeting of Parliament’s Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security held on March 12, 2024, the Divisional Secretary of Valikamam North was instructed to give priority to surveying the land belonging to the Thissa Raja Maha Vihara, resolving the related issues and handing the land back to the vihara. Investigations subsequently conducted by a committee headed by Sunil Senavi, the Minister of Buddhist and Religious Affairs in the present Government, have once again confirmed that there are no lands within the vihara premises belonging to members of the public.
The Viharadhipathi of the Thissa Vihara, Ven. Kindhota Nandharama Thera, recently told the media that there was currently no issue concerning the vihara and that there was no plan to construct a road through the premises. However, the official position of the General Secretariat of the Amarapura Kalyanawansa Nikaya should take precedence over the statement of the Viharadhipathi, he said.
He further alleged that, as it was not possible to claim ownership of the land and acquire it on that basis, attempts were being made to use the powers of the Pradeshiya Sabha to pursue such unlawful actions.
“Such activities will affect ethnic reconciliation in the country and create unnecessary conflicts between Buddhists and other communities. Therefore, the Government, including the President, must intervene immediately to protect the historical land rights of the vihara and take steps to prevent the emergence of ethnic tensions,” he said.
