Maramba Hewage Chanuka Sandaruwan vs The Officer-in-Charge, Anti-Vice Unit, Police Station, Matara – CA BAL/233/2023-2023

In the case between the petitioner (acting on behalf of Maramba Hewage Rajitha Sandaruwan) and the Officer-in-Charge of the Anti-Vice Unit, Police Station, Matara, along with the Hon. Attorney General, the court addressed the issue of whether bail could be granted under section 83(2) of the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance as amended by Act No. 41 of 2022, given the circumstances of a drug possession and trafficking arrest. It was held that no exceptional circumstances were present to justify the granting of bail, reaffirming the principle that the exclusive jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal in such bail applications—where prescribed drug quantities are involved—must be exercised with strict scrutiny. This decision relied on the amended statutory framework and established cas