Abdul Badurdeen Fathima Aneesa vs The Head Quarters Inspector and The Attorney General – CA BAIL/0255/23-2023

In the case between Abdul Badurdeen Fathima Aneesa (Petitioner, on behalf of her father, the Accused Abdul Masahir Abdul Badurdeen) and the Head Quarters Inspector, Teldeniya Police Station, and the Attorney General’s Department, Colombo-12 (Respondents), the issue concerned whether the Accused qualified for bail under amended Section 83 of the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance in the presence of “exceptional circumstances.” The court held that the prolonged delay in the trial and extended remand constituted exceptional circumstances justifying the granting of bail, reaffirming the principle that prolonged pre-trial detention cannot be used as indirect punishment contrary to the presumption of innocence and fundamental rights. This decision was based on statutory interpretation