Wanni Arachchige Jeewaka Chaminda vs. Officer-in-Charge Anti-Corruption Unit, Police Station, Matara – BR/233/2019-2023

In the case between Wanni Arachchige Nihal Ranjith (Petitioner, father of the accused) and The Officer-in-Charge, Anti-Corruption Unit, Police Station, Matara, and the Attorney General (Respondents), the court addressed the issue of bail in the context of drug trafficking under the amended Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (Act No. 41 of 2022). The court held that the accused does not meet the criteria for exceptional circumstances necessary to justify bail, reaffirming the principle that extended remand alone is insufficient to constitute an exceptional ground under Section 83(2) for the grant of bail in serious drug offences. This decision relied on statutory interpretation and established case law, emphasizing that strict legal thresholds must be satisfied for bail in offence