Pannipitiya vs. Attorney General – sllr 2011 volume 1 page 267

In Pannipitiya (petitioner) vs. Attorney General (respondent), the court addressed whether the Bail Act applies to persons charged under the Antiquities Ordinance, specifically contemplating the court’s jurisdiction to grant bail amidst explicit statutory prohibitions. It was held that the Bail Act does not extend to offences under the Antiquities Ordinance due to the express exclusion provided by Section 15C, thus precluding court jurisdiction to grant bail in such matters. This decision reaffirmed the principle that statutory provisions excluding bail must be strictly followed, with any derogation only permissible where not precluded by the enactment itself. The ruling relied on statutory construction, the explicit wording of the Bail Act and Antiquities Ordinance, and relevant precedent