Chandana Kumara vs. Air Vice Marshal, Sri Lanka Air Force and Others – sllr 2020 volume 3 page 319

Brief
In the case between Chandana Kumara (petitioner, an aircraftman of the Sri Lanka Air Force volunteer force) and Air Vice Marshal, Sri Lanka Air Force and others, the court addressed the issue of whether a Court Martial’s failure to record the individual opinion of each member and its failure to provide reasons for its finding violated mandatory procedural requirements and principles of natural justice. It was held that such omissions constitute a fatal defect, rendering the conviction and sentence illegal and null. The principle reaffirmed is that justice requires the recording of individual reasoning and transparency in Court Martial proceedings. This relied on Regulations 98, 175, and 176, relevant case law, and principles of equality before the law, underscoring the necessity for