Reported killed figures range from the twenties into the low hundreds across different secondary sources without a consistent breakdown between rioters, bystanders and those killed restoring order, and the standard academic reconstruction concentrates on the riots' course and the government's martial law response rather than compiling a reconciled total.
What would resolve this A study working systematically from the colonial government's martial law court records, coroners' inquests and provincial administrative reports for the Central, Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces to build a reconciled count distinguishing rioters, bystanders and those killed or executed by government forces.
OpenSouth Asian and Sri Lankan colonial historyCharles S. Blackton, The Action Phase of the 1915 Riots