The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by a private bus driver and affirmed his conviction and rigorous imprisonment sentence for causing the deaths of seven people in a crash near Chilaw nine years ago, the Daily Mirror reported.
A two-judge bench of Justices Amal Ranaraja and Dr. Sumudu Premachandra delivered the judgment on Tuesday, finding the sentence imposed by the High Court of Puttalam lawful and “neither excessive nor disproportionate to the offences committed.”
The case arises from a collision on November 6, 2017, near the Mundalama Bridge on the A-3 road. The accused, Mohamed Jifry Mohamed Wahil, was driving a crowded bus from Colombo towards Jaffna.
What the court found
The bench described a sequence of reckless driving: the bus was travelling at an estimated 80 to 120 km/h, swaying from side to side, overtaking dangerously and racing another bus. It struck the rear of a three-wheeler travelling on the left of the road, swerved across the carriageway, hit a bridge or culvert and overturned.
Prosecution evidence came from several eyewitnesses, including passengers and other road users, who testified that the bus was moving at what the court recorded as a terrifying speed. A Motor Vehicle Inspector who examined the wreckage found no mechanical defect, and described the road as a normal, straight stretch under standard conditions.
Wahil had argued that the three-wheeler driver attempted a sudden U-turn. He also admitted he had been travelling at excessive speed.
Justice Premachandra observed that reckless and negligent driving by public transport operators was a common occurrence, particularly on inter-provincial routes, where speeding, dangerous overtaking and racing between private buses and Sri Lanka Transport Board buses endanger passengers and pedestrians.
How the sentence was built
Wahil faced 52 counts in all: seven under Section 298 of the Penal Code for causing death by a rash or negligent act, 21 under Section 329 for causing grievous hurt by an act endangering life, and 24 under Section 328 for causing hurt.
The High Court imposed one year of rigorous imprisonment on each of the seven Section 298 counts, three months on each Section 329 count and one month on each Section 328 count, ordered to run consecutively, with fines totalling Rs. 55,800.
Those component sentences add up to 171 months, or 14 years and three months. The Daily Mirror reports the resulting total as 13 years and three months — exactly one year less. The report does not say whether any counts were ordered to run concurrently, and no other verified newsroom has carried the judgment, leaving the discrepancy unresolved.
The ruling lands amid persistent pressure on road safety enforcement, weeks after six people were killed in road incidents in a single 24-hour period.
