Impar vs. Officer-in-Charge, Police Station Sewanagala and Another – sllr 2020 volume 2 page 372

In IMPAR (Appellant) v. Officer-in-Charge, Police Station Sewanagala and another, the court addressed whether an appellant’s guilty plea and offer of compensation could be considered as grounds for receiving a non-custodial or suspended sentence. The holding established that mere admission of guilt and provision of compensation do not constitute sentence bargaining and do not automatically entitle an accused with prior convictions to a suspended sentence. The principle reaffirmed requires sentencing to account for retribution, deterrence, and circumstances of the accused while disallowing sentence bargaining. Reliance was placed on Section 303 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and pertinent case law, emphasizing that such offers must not undermine the constitutional duty to impose fit puni