The Supreme Court has ruled that the fundamental rights of a grain businessman from Nochchiyagama, Anuradhapura, were violated by his unlawful arrest and the inhuman assault inflicted on him by several police officers on allegations of cannabis possession.
Delivering its judgment on a Fundamental Rights (FR) petition filed by the businessman, T. M. Lakshan, the Court ordered five officers of the Anuradhapura Police to pay a total of Rs. 900,000 in compensation from their personal funds.
According to the order, four officers were directed to pay Rs. 200,000 each, while another officer was ordered to pay Rs. 100,000 within one month.
The judgment was delivered by Supreme Court Justice Kumuduni Wickramasinghe, with the concurrence of Justices S. Thuraraja and Sampath Wijeratne.
The respondents named in the petition included Inspector R. Ratnayake, OIC of the Excise Division of the Anuradhapura Police, along with Sergeant Ratnayake, Constable Asela, Constable Bandara, Constable Jayathilaka, and others.
The petitioner had been arrested on June 1, 2020, on allegations of possessing one kilogram of cannabis. However, the Court noted that not only had the officers failed to justify their conduct, but evidence also showed that the petitioner was brutally assaulted before being produced before the Magistrate’s Court, remanded, and later released.
The Supreme Court held that the treatment meted out to the petitioner amounted to a violation of his right to equal protection of the law under Article 12(1) of the Constitution.
In addition to the compensation order, the Court directed that the full amount be paid within six months.
