Valahasuriya Kelum Udaya Kumara vs. The Hon. Attorney General – CA PHC/APN 0149/22-2023

In the case between the Hon. Attorney General (Complainant/Respondent) and Valahasuriya Kelum Udaya Kumara (Accused-Petitioner), the Court addressed the issue of whether the trial, conviction, and sentence of the accused in absentia before the High Court of Panadura were legally sustainable, particularly in relation to the accused being declared absconding. It was held that the trial in the absence of the accused was justified based on the sufficiency of evidence indicating that the accused could not be traced and had absconded, and that the subsequent application under section 241(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure did not establish compelling grounds to purge the default. This decision reaffirmed the principle that a finding of abscondence may rest on substantive, credible evidence rat