A video has been circulating on TikTok, purportedly showing a group of young people dancing, with the overlaid Sinhala text claiming that they are members of the Inter University Students’ Federation (IUSF), better known as “Anthare,” and that this is how they have been “protesting in the Malwana premises.”
The video has also been shared on other platforms, including Facebook and Instagram.
A property in Malwana has recently courted controversy over its ownership, with people claiming that former minister Basil Rajapaksa and a business partner own the property even though he has claimed otherwise. IUSF members entered and started occupying the premises on May 14, 2026, demanding that it be allocated to the higher education sector.
Evidence
- In order to first identify the source of the video, we did a reverse image search of several keyframes and were directed to the original video, which was posted on May 15, 2026, by a Facebook account named Dinu Liyanage, with the location tagged as the University of Colombo.
2. We also noticed that she later published another video on May 16, 2026, clarifying that the footage was actually recorded in 2024 at the Sri Palee Campus of the University of Colombo, where she studied, and that it should not be taken out of context as it has nothing to do with the IUSF protests.
3. On the same day, she made another post with screenshots of false claims made about the video and denied any connection with the IUSF protests.
She explained that the video was simply a fun memory of her group dancing while preparing a set for a play as a project in her final year of university.
Property To Be Handed Over To UGC
In 2022, during the Aragalaya/Citizens’ Protests during the severe economic and political crisis in Sri Lanka, several politicians’ properties were attacked by civilians and mob groups, making a statement about how such property had been purchased through corrupt means. A property in Malwana, which had been linked to then minister Basil Rajapaksa, was one such building that was set on fire. However, this allegation of ownership did not hold up in court due to the lack of evidence. On June 3, 2022, Rajapaksa and businessman Thirukumar Nadesan were acquitted and released from a case filed over the misappropriation of public funds to build the premises on a 16-acre plot of land in Malwana. Since then, no legal owner has been identified, and the premises remain with the Ministry of Justice. The IUSF entered the premises to demand that the property be used for the higher education sector for student and public use. On May 18, 2026 after a discussion between the IUSF and Prime Minister and Minister of Education Harini Amarasuriya, it has now been decided that the property would be transferred to the University Grants Commission and allocated accordingly for higher education purposes.
Verdict
Social media posts claiming that a video of young people dancing during a recent protest and occupation of a disputed residence in Malwana, which was carried out by the Inter-University Student Federation of Sri Lanka, are false. The video shows a group of students from the Sri Palee Campus in Colombo and it was initially posted on Facebook by a student.
FAQs
Q1. What does the video show?
A group of young people dancing, while a few others in the background are preparing wooden structures. The Sinhala text accompanying the video states, “Anthare students during a tense protest in the Malwana residence. Show sympathy for their parents.”
Q2. Who initially posted the video, where, and when?
A person named Dinu Liyanage posted it on Facebook on May 15, 2026.
Q3. Does the video have any connection to the protests carried out in Malwana by the IUSF?
No. The video is of a group assignment that students in Liyanage’s group were preparing for, back in 2024.
Our Sources
Post on Facebook account of Dinu Liyanage, published on May 15, 2026
Post on Facebook account of Dinu Liyanage, published on May 16, 2026
Post on Facebook account of Dinu Liyanage, published on May 16, 2026
