Ummu Yekeena Samsudeen vs Hon. Attorney General – CA/BAL/0079/2024-2024

In the case between Ummu Yekeena Samsudeen (Petitioner) and the Officer-in-Charge, Police Narcotic Bureau, Colombo 01, and the Hon. Attorney General (Respondents), the court addressed the issue of whether bail should be granted to a suspect indicted under the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance for possession and trafficking of a substantial quantity of heroin. It was held that prolonged remand and claims of illegal detention did not constitute “special circumstances” to justify bail. The principle reaffirmed is that bail under the relevant statute is strictly limited and only available under exceptional circumstances following a judicial finding. This decision relied on interpretation of Sections 83(2) and 84 of the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance and Sections 115 an