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Vidya trial-at-bar delayed; no decision yet on whether it should be held in Colombo or Jaffna
View(s):By Ranjith Pathmasiri
The trial into the rape and murder of 18-year old schoolgirl Sivaloganathan Vidya has been delayed because there is no decision yet on where it should be held.
The three judges to the trial-at-bar to try the ten accused of the murder of the schoolgirl in 2015 at Punguduthivu in Kayts have been named, but the decision to hear the case in Colombo was put on hold following another proposal that it is more appropriate to hear the case in Jaffna.
Indictments have been filed in the High Court of Jaffna by the Attorney General against the ten accused on 41 counts including the abduction, gang rape, murder and unlawful assembly. The exhibition of information relating to this case has been displayed in the Jaffna High Court.
All of the ten accused and 23 witnesses are residents of Kayts in Jaffna, while the three judges who have been named for the trial-at-bar are based in Colombo. The three-member bench comprises A.A.R. Heiyantuduwa, Achala Wengappulli and Sampath Wijeratne – all judges of the Colombo High Court.
It was on a request made by the AG under Section 450 of the Code of Criminal Procedure Act that the Chief Justice took steps to appoint the trial-at-bar. The AG noted that, given the high profile nature of this case and the fact that it generated public expression of anger and grief, it should be considered a special circumstances case.
The AG’s has also drawn attention to the possible logistical problems that would crop up if the case is heard in Colombo.
Sources said holding the trail-at-bar in Jaffna, the judicial area of the Northern Provincial High Court, would be most convenient to all parties connected to the case.
While all trials at bar held so far have sat in Colombo mainly due to the availability of courthouses and judges, there is no legal hurdle for such sittings to be held outstation, a senior criminal lawyer said.
There are five sitting High Court judges in the North — M. Illanchelian, Ramanathan Kannan, T.L.A. Manaf, S. Mahendran and Prema Shankar — from the High Courts in Jaffna, Vavuniya and Mannar. It has been pointed out that given that the accused and the witnesses are Tamil speaking persons, hearing the case in Jaffna would be most appropriate.