Kiribanda vs The Attorney General – sllr 2012 volume 2 page 120

In the case between Kiribanda (Appellant) and The Attorney General (Respondent), the court addressed the issue of whether a defense of drunkenness under Section 79 of the Penal Code could reduce a murder conviction to culpable homicide not amounting to murder. It was held that the burden is on the accused to establish that intoxication prevented the formation of the requisite murderous intent. The judgment reaffirmed the principle that mere evidence of intoxication is insufficient unless it leads to incapacity to form intent. The decision relied on Section 79 of the Penal Code and Section 105 of the Evidence Ordinance, emphasizing that claims of drunkenness must be substantiated with clear proof of incapacity. The case clarified that awareness of one’s actions negates the defense of intoxi