105-NLR-NLR-V-65-W.-G.-DAYARATNE-Appellant-and-T.-A.-BOWIE-I.-P.-Crimes-Respondent.pdf
SRI SKANDA ~R.A,TATT, J.—Dayaratne v. Bowie
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1S64Preserd: Sri Skasda Rajah, J.
W. 6. DAYARATNE, Appellant, and T. A. BOWIE (I. P. Crimea),
Respondent
S. C. 947—M. C. Colombo, 23020fACriminal ‘procedure—Accused produced in custody without process—Duty of Magistrateto examine informant and other persons forthwith—Meaning of word“ forthwith ”—Criminal Procedure Code, ss. 148 (I) (d), 151 (2), 190—CivilProcedure Code, s, 756.
By section. 151 (2) of the Criminal Procedure Code :—
“ Where proceedings have been instituted under paragraph (d) of section148 (1), the Magistrate shall forthwith exanine on oath the person who hasbrought the accused before the court and any other person who may bepresent in court able to speak to the facts of the case. ”
Held, that the word “ forthwith “ means “ within a reasonable time ” or“ as soon as practicable
Issadeen v. Inspector of Police, Badulla (65 C. L. W. 18) not followed.
Appeal from a judgment of the Magistrate’s Court, Colombo.Accused-Appellant in person.
13. Wijesinghe, Crown Counsel, for the Attorney-General.
'January 6,1964. Sbi Seanda Rajae, J.—
Learned Crown Counsel brings to my notice that this accused wasproduced before, the Magistrate on the 30th of July, 1962, but the evi-dence was recorded jnly on the 11th of October, 1962. He also brings
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SRI SKA2TDA RAJAH, J.—Day mat ne v. Bowie
to my notice that there are some coaSksiang jndgmesits with regardto the interpretation of the word “ forthwith ” in section 151 (2) of theCriminal Procedure Code which is as follows :—
“ where proceedings have been instituted under paragraph (d) ofsection 14S (1), the Magistrate shall forthwith examine on oath theperson who has brought the accused before the court and any otherperson who may be present in court able to speak to the facts of thecase
Those judgments are (1) Issadeen v. Inspector of Police, Badulla1, ajudgment of Herat, J., (2) Supreme Court Minutes of 5th September,1963, S. C. No. 351/’63 M. C. Nuwara Eliva No. 27115, an unreportedjudgment of Abeyesundere, J., and (3) Supreme Court Minutes of 23rdNovember, 1961, S. C. No. 946/’61 M. C. Jaffna No. 21325, an unreportedjudgment of T. S. Fernando, J. In the first two judgments I havereferred to, the word “ forthwith ” has, in effect, been interpreted tomean “ at once ”, that is to say, immediately the accused is produced,whereas in the last as :i within a reasonable time
The word ci forthwith ” in section 190 of the Criminal Proceaere Codewas the subject of decision by a Divisional Bench of two Judges, viz.,Wijeyewardene, C.J. and Gnnasekara, J., in the case of Benda v. David{S. I. Police) where they interpreted the word t: forthwith ” in thatsection not to mean “ immediately ”. In doing so they overruled theview taken by Basnayake, J. in the case of VethaiMyagam v. Inspectorof Police, Kank&saniurai s where he construed the word " forthwithto mean “ immediately
The word "'forthwith ” in section 756 of the Civil Procedure Codewas the subject of decision by the Privy Council in Sameen v. Abeyewick-rema 4 and Their Lordships held that it was not right to construe thethe word “ forthwith ” as meaning “ on the same day
One can very well conceive of a man being produced in Court within ,twenty-four hours of his arrest as required by the provisions of theCriminal Procedure Code but there being no witness available at thattime, e.g., the only witness being the injured man and he being-unconscious in hospital and the person who brought him before theCourt not knowing anything about the matter. No useful purpose willbe served by examining the latter.
I prefer to interpret the word “ forthwith ” in section 151 (2) of theCriminal Procedure Code to mean “ within a reasonable time ” or “assoon as practicable ”. Therefore, there was no illegality or even irregu- ,larifcy in that the evidence was recorded on a subsequent date.
There is no merit in the appeal on the facts. It is dismissed. Theconviction and sentence are affirmed.
Appeal dismissed,:
1 [1963) 65 C. L. W. 18.» (1949) 50 L. S. 185.
1 (1949) SO y. L. B. 575.4 U963)*64 N. L. 583.