Hiniduma Dahanayakage Siripala alias Kiri Mahaththaya vs Hon. Attorney General – SC APPEAL NO.115/2014-2020

In the case between the Hon. Attorney General, representing the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, and Hiniduma Dahanayakage Siripala alias Kiri Mahaththaya and Henapita Gamage Shantha, the Supreme Court addressed the effect of non-compliance with Section 196 of the Code of Criminal Procedure Act (CCPA). The central legal issue was whether a failure to read and explain the indictment and to record the plea constitutes a fundamental procedural defect requiring reversal of a conviction or whether it is a curable irregularity under the proviso to Article 138(1) of the Constitution. It was held that a conviction should not be vitiated solely on the basis of such procedural irregularity in the absence of actual prejudice to the accused or a demonstrable failure of justice. The decision