The pageant winner went to hospital with head injuries
Beauty queen Pushpika De Silva had the crown taken off her head by the previous year's winner, who claimed that De Silva could not win the title as she was a divorced woman.
De Silva had won the Mrs Sri Lanka title at the ceremony on Sunday, which was broadcast on national TV. However after being crowned, the 2019 winner Caroline Jurie came on to the stage, grabbed the microphone, and claimed that she could not win the title as she was divorced. The competition rules state that competitors must be married. Jurie then grabbed the crown off De Silva's head and handed it to the first runner-up. De Silva then left the stage, visibly upset at the ugly scenes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5rTt60PT90
In a Facebook post, De Silva said that whilst her and her husband do live apart she is not divorced. She also said in the post that she had been to hospital with head injuries received as a result of the crown being take from her head.
De Silva wrote how the victory was a "historical moment for me as a single woman, where women and men all over the world raise their voice behind party, color, religion, caste and division. I say this love from all of you is a giant strength to me.
She went on to write: "On the other hand I'm not a divorce woman. I say with great responsibility that I am not a divorce woman even at this moment of writing. If I was a divorce, I would dare them to submit my divorce scripts.
"I haven't hidden from the world that I'm with my child. I also have personal reasons to be that way. But, being apart is one. Divorce is something else. I'm still an un divorced woman.
The national director of Mrs Sri Lanka World, Chandimal Jayasinghe, has described Jurie's behaviour as a "disgrace," and told the BBC that the crown would be returned to De Silva. Jayasinghe also said that the organisation has begun an investigation int0 the incident.
The pageant is a major event in Sri Lanka, with the prime minister's wife one of the guests at the prestigious ceremony.
