The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka has ruled that the fundamental rights of a young man arrested by the Payagala Police in 2012 were violated, in a judgment delivered on 7 March 2026.
The petitioner, Lewwanduwa Vithanage Sameera Sampath, a 24-year-old resident of Katukurudugahalandha, Pothuvila, Payagala, was arrested by the Payagala Police on 27 January 2012 while travelling to the Katukurunda market to sell vegetables.
According to the petition, the police detained him for two days while questioning him about a theft that had taken place in the area and about two other individuals living nearby. During this period, he alleged that he was subjected to severe torture and ill-treatment. The alleged acts included assaulting him with hands and feet, hanging him with his hands cuffed behind his back and beating him, and exposing him to smoke by burning charcoal under a structure, causing severe breathing difficulties.
Following the arrest, Sameera Sampath’s mother filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, alleging that her son had been tortured while in police custody. The police subsequently produced Sameera Sampath before the Commission, and it was reported that he had been verbally abused for making the complaint.
He was later released on police bail on the night of 28 January 2012. According to the petition, police officers threatened him not to visit the Human Rights Commission again and not to seek medical treatment. However, due to the injuries sustained, Sameera Sampath was admitted to the Panadura Hospital, where he received treatment for three days.
The petitioner filed a Fundamental Rights application before the Supreme Court under case number SCFR/127/12. The case was taken up for hearing on 16 June 2025, and the judgment was delivered on 7 March 2026.
The Supreme Court held that the petitioner’s fundamental rights under Articles 11, 12(1), 13(1), 13(2), and 13(5) of the Constitution had been violated.
Accordingly, the Court ordered compensation to be paid to the petitioner as follows: Rs. 750,000 by Sub-Inspector Padmakumara, who served as the Officer-in-Charge of the Crimes Division of the Payagala Police at the time; Rs. 250,000 by Kulasinghe, the then Officer-in-Charge of the Payagala Police Station; and Rs. 100,000 by the State.
The case was heard before a bench comprising Justices A.H.M. Nawaz, Kumuduni Wickremasinghe, and M. Sampath K.B. Wijeratne.
The petitioner was represented by Attorney-at-Law Pulasthi Hewamanne with Attorney-at-Law Padila, on the instructions of Attorney-at-Law Suraj Rajapakse. The respondents were represented by Attorneys-at-Law Nageetha Wijesekara, A.D.G. Rubasinghe, Chamara Nanayakkarawasam, Pathali Aberathna, and Sampath Yalewatta, while Deputy Solicitor General Lakmali Karunanayake appeared on behalf of the State.