Gampalage Anil Nishantha Fonseka alias Suranji vs. The Hon. Attorney General – CA/HCC/0062/22-2024

In the case between Gampalage Anil Nishantha Fonseka alias Suranji (Accused-Appellant) and the Hon. Attorney General (Complainant-Respondent), the court addressed whether the appellant’s conduct was protected under the right of private defence and the correctness of the conviction for culpable homicide not amounting to murder under section 297 (exception 4) of the Penal Code. The holding established that the accused exceeded the permissible bounds of private defence during the altercation related to a boundary dispute. Consequently, the conviction for culpable homicide not amounting to murder was upheld, but the period of rigorous imprisonment was reduced from twelve to nine years. The decision reaffirmed the principles governing private defence and sentencing under the Penal Code, referen