The Attorney General vs. Balasuriya Mudiyanselage Ranjith Balasuriya and Balasuriya Mudiyanselage Sugath Bandara Balasuriya – CA PHC APN 50/2017-2018

In The Attorney General, Attorney General’s Department, Colombo 12 v. Balasuriya Mudiyanselage Ranjith Balasuriya and Balasuriya Mudiyanselage Sugath Bandara Balasuriya, the core issue addressed was whether the High Court of Avissawella imposed sentences on the Respondents for offences under section 360A(1) of the Penal Code that were manifestly inadequate and illegal, specifically whether the mandatory statutory minimum sentences had been adhered to. The court further examined whether the delay in invoking revision—attributed to internal processes within the Attorney General’s Department—constituted a valid ground to refuse relief, and clarified the circumstances in which the Court of Appeal’s revisionary jurisdiction is properly exercised. It was held that the sentences of one year rigor