The Court of Appeal set aside the Colombo High Court’s decision that acquitted five accused, including naval personnel, in the murder of TNA MP Nadaraja Raviraj, ordering a fresh trial over concerns that the jury was not properly guided on the evidence presented.
The Court of Appeal has set aside the Colombo High Court verdict that acquitted five accused, including naval personnel, in the murder case of Tamil National Alliance Parliamentarian Nadaraja Raviraj. The appellate court ordered that the case be heard afresh from the beginning.
The Attorney General had filed indictments in 2016 against naval personnel Prasanna Chandana Kumara, Gamini Seneviratne, Pradeep Chaminda, as well as Sivakanthan Vivekananthan (also known as Charan) and Fabian Royston.
At the request of the defense, the trial before the Colombo High Court was conducted before a Sinhala speaking jury. Key witness Sampath Manamperi, who is currently in custody, testified during the proceedings. Following a lengthy trial, the High Court judge, based on the unanimous decision of the jury, acquitted all accused.
The Attorney General challenged this verdict before the Court of Appeal, arguing that the High Court judge had failed to adequately direct the jury on the evidence presented during the trial.
After considering the appeal, a bench comprising Justices Sashi Mahendran and Amal Ranaraja delivered the new ruling. Justice Sashi Mahendran, with the agreement of Justice Amal Ranaraja, observed that it was unusual for the Colombo High Court to deliver its verdict around 12:50 a.m., well past midnight.
The Court of Appeal accepted the Attorney General’s argument that despite the testimony of key witness Sampath Manampera providing sufficient evidence against the accused, the High Court judge had failed to properly instruct the jury on the legal and evidentiary value of the submissions. The appellate bench set aside the acquittal and ordered the Colombo High Court to conduct a fresh trial on the charges.
