The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by a Buddhist monk convicted of sexually abusing a novice monk, upholding both his conviction and sentences of 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment for grave sexual abuse, the Daily Mirror reported at 10.51 a.m. on Thursday.
The appeal was dismissed by a bench of Justices Amal Ranaraja and Dr. Sumudu Premachandra.
The conviction
The accused Thera was convicted by the Polonnaruwa High Court on two counts of grave sexual abuse under Section 365B(2)(b) of the Penal Code.
The charges related to incidents alleged to have occurred between 23 November 2014 and 23 January 2015, when the victim was seven years old and living at the same temple as the accused — who was a senior monk there.
The High Court imposed on each count:
- 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment
- A fine of Rs. 50,000, with six months’ simple imprisonment in default
The substantive prison terms were ordered to run concurrently, so the total remains 10 years. The accused was also ordered to pay Rs. 100,000 in compensation to the victim.
The ground of appeal that failed
The appeal turned on the reliability of the child’s testimony. The Court of Appeal held that the trial judge was entitled to rely on the evidence of the child victim after finding his testimony credible and trustworthy.
In its judgment, the court held that the victim had given a detailed and consistent account, and that the contradiction identified during cross-examination did not relate to the central allegations of sexual abuse. That is the operative finding: a defence that locates an inconsistency in a child’s evidence must show it goes to the substance of the allegation, not merely that one exists.
Additional Solicitor General Shanil Kularatne appeared for the Attorney General.
The timeline
The offences date from late 2014 and early 2015. The appellate judgment comes in October 2026 — close to twelve years after the conduct alleged. The Daily Mirror does not report when the High Court convicted, so how that interval divides between investigation, trial and appeal cannot be established from this filing.
Sri Lankan courts have handed down substantial terms in comparable cases involving clergy. This desk has reported a monk sentenced in Anuradhapura to 30 years’ rigorous imprisonment for child abuse, and a Sri Lankan monk jailed for 13 years in Melbourne for offences against girls at a temple there.
Not reported
The Daily Mirror does not name the convicted monk, the temple, or the date of the original High Court conviction, and does not say whether he has been in custody throughout. It does not report whether the Rs. 100,000 compensation has been paid or whether a further appeal to the Supreme Court is open or intended.
No comment is reported from the Department of Buddhist Affairs, the relevant Nikaya chapter or the Mahanayake Theras on the accused’s standing in the order, and the filing does not say whether he has been disrobed or faces ecclesiastical proceedings — a live question given the separate dispute this month over monastic robes and imprisoned clergy.
This report rests on a single verified newsroom. A search across Ada Derana, NewsFirst, Hiru News, Colombo Gazette, The Island and Daily FT returned no other verified outlet’s account of the judgment at the time of writing.
Sources: Daily Mirror.
