The Court of Appeal on July 23, 2025, ordered the reduction of a sentence imposed on a man convicted by the Hambantota High Court for an incident that took place 19 years earlier, when he was only 19 years old.
In 2007, the Attorney General indicted five individuals at the Hambantota High Court over a violent altercation that occurred on August 8, 2005, in Ambalantota, following a dispute involving damage caused to farmland by a group of cattle. When the High Court finally delivered its verdict, nearly two decades had passed since the incident. Out of the five accused, only Danushka Chamara Sellahewa, the Appellant, was convicted. He was sentenced to two terms of 10 years of rigorous imprisonment for causing death and attempting murder under Sections 296 and 300 of the Penal Code, read with Section 32.
Dissatisfied with the sentence, the Appellant filed an appeal with the Court of Appeal. On July 23, Justice P. Kumararatnam, with the concurrence of Justice R. P. Hettiarachchi, delivered the judgment.
The Court found that the incident occurred as part of a sudden fight without premeditation and therefore fell under exception 4 to Section 294 of the Penal Code, which applies to culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Both the President’s Counsel for the Appellant and the Senior Deputy Solicitor General representing the State agreed on this interpretation.
Taking into consideration the appellant’s age at the time of the offence (19 years old), the absence of premeditation, and the lapse of nearly 19 years before final adjudication, the Court decided to reduce the sentence. Accordingly, the original sentence of two 10-year terms was substituted with two terms of 5 years’ rigorous imprisonment, to be served concurrently. The fine of Rs. 100,000 and compensation of Rs. 500,000 imposed by the High Court were ordered to remain unchanged.
The Court also directed that the reduced sentence be effective retroactively from January 27, 2023, the date on which the original sentence was imposed by the High Court.
President’s Counsel Saliya Peiris appeared for the Appellant. Senior Deputy Solicitor General Hiranjan Peiris appeared on behalf of the Attorney General.
