Hewa Hakuru Somadasa v. The Attorney General – CA APPLICATION NO. 228/2010-2017

In the case between the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and Hewa Hakuru Somadasa, the court addressed the issue of whether the accused-appellant’s conviction for rape under Section 364(3) of the Penal Code was justified given the reliability and consistency of the prosecutrix’s evidence. It was held that conviction based solely on the uncorroborated and inconsistent testimony of the prosecutrix was unsafe, particularly as she admitted to untruthful statements. This decision reaffirmed the principle that criminal convictions must be based on reliable and corroborated evidence when the sole witness’s credibility is in doubt. The reasoning emphasized the necessity for careful and comprehensive evaluation of evidence, following relevant provisions of the Penal Code and established s