Attorney General v. Ranjit Jayalath – sllr 1986 volume 1 page 205

In Attorney-General v. Ranjit Jayalath, the court examined the interpretation of Section 110(4) (proviso) of the Code of Criminal Procedure Act regarding the extent of the accused’s right to peruse police investigation notes and statements during a non-summary inquiry. The issue arose when the Magistrate allowed the defense to peruse all investigation notes, which was challenged by the Attorney-General. Upon review, it was held that the proviso restricts the defense’s access strictly to the statements of witnesses who have already testified at the inquiry, not to all investigation notes. The judgment reaffirms the principle that statutory rights of perusal under Section 110(4) must be limited to statements of witnesses examined up to that stage. The decision relied on statutory constructio