Nadaraja Chithrawel vs Hon. Attorney General – CA NO.71/2013-2013

In the case between Nadaraja Chithrawel and the Hon. Attorney General, the court addressed whether the accused, sentenced to death under Section 296 of the Penal Code, was deprived of the statutory option of a jury trial pursuant to Section 195(ee) of the Criminal Procedure Code. It was determined that neither the Tamil record nor the English translation documented compliance with the requirement to offer the jury option to the accused at the mandated procedural stages. The court held that, due to this omission, the conviction and sentence could not stand. The underlying principle reaffirmed is that strict adherence to procedural safeguards, particularly the right to a trial by jury when so legislated, is fundamental to a fair trial. The decision relied on statutory mandates, resulting in