Liyanage v. Officer In Charge, Chilaw Police Station – sllr 1994 volume 1 page 223

In LIYANAGE v. OFFICER-IN-CHARGE, CHILAW POLICE STATION, the court examined whether Section 449 of the Criminal Procedure Code is applicable when discrepancies in evidence arise solely from conflicting testimony between two witnesses, specifically the accused-appellant and the spouse. It was held that such conflicts, relating to differences in the sequence of events and presence of a firearm, do not constitute giving false evidence within the meaning of Section 449. The principle reaffirmed is that Section 449 targets deliberate falsity, not mere inconsistencies between witnesses. Reliance was placed on the precedent of Ahamath v. Silva, underscoring that discrepancies between witness testimonies do not suffice for a conviction under Section 449, and acquittal is appropriate where evidence