Welathanthrage Amila Sampath Botheju v. The Officer in Charge, Police Station, Biyagama – CA BAL/0239/23-2023

In the case between Welathanthrage Amila Sampath Botheju (petitioner) and The Officer in Charge, Police Station, Biyagama, and The Attorney General’s Department, Colombo (respondents), the court addressed whether exceptional circumstances existed to grant bail under section 83(2) of the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Act No. 41 of 2022, given the serious nature of the drug trafficking offence and the quantity of heroin involved. It was held that neither the delay in filing charges nor the pending indictment constituted sufficient exceptional circumstances to warrant bail. Emphasis was placed on the threshold established by statutory amendments and judicial precedents governing drug-related bail decisions, reaffirming that strict compliance with the “exceptional circumstance