HerathMudiyanselage Premaratne vs Hon Attorney General – CA NO. 63/2017-2021

In the case between The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (represented by the Hon. Attorney General) and Herath Mudiyanselage Premaratne, the court addressed the issue of whether the conviction and sentencing of the Accused-Appellant for causing death and grievous hurt by rash and negligent driving was justified, and whether defects identified in the bus mitigated liability. It was held that, although certain mechanical defects were present in the bus, the substantive cause of the accident was the accused’s high-speed and negligent driving. The judgment reaffirmed the legal principle that criminal liability for vehicular accidents primarily turns on the driver’s culpable conduct, unless mechanical defects are shown to be the proximate cause. The aggregate sentence of 37.5 years’ r