Suneetha Wijesinghe v. Hon. Attorney General – CA 150/2013-2016

In the case between Suneetha Wijesinghe (Accused-Appellant) and the Hon. Attorney General, Attorney General’s Department (Plaintiff-Respondent), the court addressed the issue of whether a custodial sentence for possession and trafficking of cannabis should be suspended on compassionate grounds. It was held that, despite mitigating factors such as loss of employment, family hardships, and absence of prior convictions, the seriousness of the offence and the appellant’s position as a police constable necessitated a deterrent custodial sentence. The key legal principle reaffirmed was that compassionate grounds, even when substantiated, do not outweigh the need for public servants to receive deterrent sentences for serious drug offences. The decision relied on Sections 54(A)(b) and 54(A)(d) of