Reigning Mrs. World arrested over onstage melee in Sri Lanka
Police in Sri Lanka have arrested the reigning Mrs. World for pulling the crown off the head of the winner of a Mrs. Sri Lanka beauty pageant and allegedly causing injuries
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Police in Sri Lanka on Thursday arrested the reigning Mrs. World for pulling the crown off the head of the winner of a Mrs. Sri Lanka beauty pageant and allegedly causing injuries. She was later released on bail.
Caroline Jurie, who won the Mrs. World 2020 competition, was accused of hurting Pushpika De Silva, who won the Mrs. Sri Lanka title at a televised pageant held in Colombo on Sunday.
Moments after De Silva won the title, Jurie, who is also Sri Lankan, came on stage and snatched the crown from her, saying she was not eligible because she was divorced. Jurie then gave the crown to the first-runner up, declaring she was the winner.
In a statement on her Facebook page, De Silva denied being divorced.
"Being apart is one. Divorce is something else. I’m still an un divorced woman,” she wrote.
Police spokesman Ajith Rohana said police received a complaint from De Silva that she suffered injuries when her crown was removed.
Rohana said Jurie and a model, Chula Padmendra, were arrested Thursday on charges of “simple hurt and criminal force” and were later released on bail. The two women have been ordered to appear in court on April 19.
Jurie declined to comment as she left the police station.
The incident at Sunday's pageant, which was attended by the prime minister's wife, created a huge uproar in the Indian Ocean island nation. On Monday, organizers of the pageant said they would return the crown to De Silva.