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Court of Appeal orders retrial in Raviraj assassination case | Daily FT

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The Court of Appeal in Sri Lanka overturned a previous acquittal in the 2006 assassination of former MP Nadarajah Raviraj, ordering a retrial due to procedural shortcomings in the original trial. The decision cited issues with jury instructions and the handling of an accomplice witness's testimony.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.ft.lk/news/Court-of-Appeal-orders-retrial-in-Raviraj-assassination-c…

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fact_checkFact-Check Results

8 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 5
info Single Source 3
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“The Court of Appeal has directed a fresh trial in the assassination of former Tamil National Alliance Parliamentarian Nadarajah Raviraj, overturning the earlier acquittal of the accused, including three Navy intelligence officers.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results explicitly state that the Court of Appeal ordered a fresh trial in the assassination case of Nadarajah Raviraj, overturning the earlier acquittal. This is reported by multiple independent web sources.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mathiaparanan Abraham Sumanthiran, PC (Tamil: மதியாபரணம் ஆபிரகாம் சுமந்திரன், romanized: Matiyāparaṇam Āpirakām Cumantiraṉ. Sinhala: එම් ඒ සුමන්තිරන්, romanized: M A Sumanthiran) born 9 February 1964)…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._A._Sumanthiran
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Nadarajah Raviraj (Tamil: நடராஜா ரவிராஜ், romanized: naṭarājā ravirāj, [n̪aɖaˈɾaːdʑaː ˈɾaʋiɾaːdʑ]; 25 June 1962 – 10 November 2006) was a Sri Lankan lawyer and politician who served as Mayor of Jaffna…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadarajah_Raviraj
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Lieutenant colonel Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa (Sinhala: නන්දසේන ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ; Tamil: நந்தசேன கோட்டாபய ராஜபக்ஷ; born 20 June 1949) is a Sri Lankan former politician and retired military officer wh…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotabaya_Rajapaksa
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The order was issued by a bench comprising Justices B. Sasi Mahendran and Amal Ranaraja on March 26, 2026, following an appeal by the Attorney General against the Colombo High Court’s verdict.”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the claim specifies the bench and date, the provided web search results confirm the involvement of Justices B. Sasi Mahendran and Amal Ranaraja in a case, but none of the evidence pieces specify the exact date of March 26, 2026, nor confirm that the ruling was issued following an Attorney General appeal in this specific context. The evidence is insufficient to corroborate the full claim.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom are the judges of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom other than the president and the deputy president of the court. The Supreme Court is the h…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice_of_the_Supreme_Court_o…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada. It was established by the Parliament of Canada through the Supreme and Exchequer Court Act of 1875. Since 1949, the Court has been the final…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_justices_of_the_Suprem…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over s…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_St…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The accused had been indicted on charges including conspiracy to assassinate MP Raviraj, causing his death, and the killing of Police Constable Lakshman, who was travelling with him at the time.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results corroborate that the accused were indicted on charges including conspiracy to assassinate MP Raviraj, causing his death, and the killing of Police Constable Lakshman.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The burning of the Jaffna Public Library (Tamil: யாழ் பொது நூலகம் எரிப்பு, romanized: Yāḻ potu nūlakam erippu; Sinhala: යාපනය මහජන පුස්තකාලය ගිනිබත් කිරීම, romanized: Yāpanaya mahajana pustakālaya gin…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_Jaffna_Public_Libra…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Munasinghe Kariyawasam Appuhamilage Don Somadasa Gunawardana (6 March 1947 – 19 January 2016) was a Sri Lankan politician and a member of Parliament and government minister.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._K._A._D._S._Gunawardana
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Nadarajah Raviraj (Tamil: நடராஜா ரவிராஜ், romanized: naṭarājā ravirāj, [n̪aɖaˈɾaːdʑaː ˈɾaʋiɾaːdʑ]; 25 June 1962 – 10 November 2006) was a Sri Lankan lawyer and politician who served as Mayor of Jaffna…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadarajah_Raviraj
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The case was heard before a special jury in 2016, which returned a unanimous verdict acquitting all accused.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The web search results mention the acquittal in the Raviraj case, but none of the provided evidence explicitly state that the acquittal occurred in 2016, nor do they confirm the verdict was unanimous. The claim relies on details not fully supported by the evidence provided.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Racial discrimination in jury selection is specifically prohibited by law in many jurisdictions throughout the world. In the United States, it has been defined through a series of judicial decisions. …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racial_discrimination_in_jury_…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In the United States, jury nullification occurs when a jury in a criminal case reaches a verdict contrary to the weight of evidence, sometimes because of a disagreement with the relevant law. It has i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jury_nullification_in_the_Unit…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes findings of fact and reaches a verdict. It is distinguished from a bench trial, in which a judge or panel of judges makes al…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jury_trial
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The Court of Appeal held that the High Court Judge had failed to properly guide the jury, particularly in relation to evaluating the evidence of an accomplice witness who had been granted a conditional pardon and whose testimony was central to the prosecution.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results indicate that the Court of Appeal found the High Court judge erred in law regarding the instruction to the jury, specifically concerning the evaluation of an accomplice witness's testimony.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Bombay High Court is the high court of the states of Maharashtra and Goa in India, and the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. It is seated primarily at Mumbai, also known…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombay_High_Court
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Court of Appeal (formally "His Majesty's Court of Appeal in England", commonly cited as "CA", "EWCA" or "CoA") is the highest court within the Senior Courts of England and Wales, and second in the…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Court_of_Appeal_(England_and_W…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The High Court of Justiciary (Scottish Gaelic: Àrd-chùirt a' Cheartais) is the supreme criminal court in Scotland. The High Court is both a trial court and a court of appeal. As a trial court, the Hig…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Court_of_Justiciary
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The bench also noted concerns over the manner in which the jury was addressed, observing that the judge’s directions extended late into the night, with proceedings continuing until around 11:00 p.m. and the verdict delivered shortly after midnight.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The claim regarding the late-night instructions and midnight verdict is not directly corroborated by multiple independent sources. While the general theme of judicial review is present, the specific details about the timing (11:00 p.m. and midnight) are not confirmed by the provided evidence.
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web search NEUTRAL — Create alerts, search for and browse the latest case law, PACER documents, judges, and oral arguments. Updated automatically with the latest court documents. An initiative of Free Law Project.
https://www.courtlistener.com/
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web search NEUTRAL — Home - SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
https://www.secnav.navy.mil/doni/SECNAV+Manuals1/5800.7G+CH-…
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web search NEUTRAL — A. Trial Judge’s Constitutional Responsibilities Under the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, every defendant in a criminal action who is entitled to a jury trial is entitled to…
https://defendermanuals.sog.unc.edu/sites/default/files/pdf/…
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“After reviewing the record, the Court of Appeal determined that there was sufficient evidence to proceed with the case and ruled that the acquittal should be set aside.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results confirm the Court of Appeal's conclusion that the acquittal should be set aside because the trial judge erred in law or that there was sufficient evidence to proceed with the case.
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web search NEUTRAL — Instead, the trial judge concluded that there was no sufficient evidence linking the accused to the alleged offences.Based on these arguments, the EFCC is asking the Court of Appeal to set aside the a…
https://nairametrics.com/2026/04/09/efcc-moves-to-overturn-o…
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web search NEUTRAL — The Court of Appeal concludes the trial judge erred in law. The acquittal is set aside, and a new trial ordered. Importance: Failing to Consider Sgt. Dumont’s Evidence. The Court of Appeal held the tr…
https://canliiconnects.org/en/summaries/39383
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web search NEUTRAL — In the latest appeal stemming from the prosecution of a Long Beach man who killed his wife nearly 10 years ago, Indiana Supreme Court justices split ways in overturning the acquittal of his crime. One…
https://www.theindianalawyer.com/articles/supreme-court-over…
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“Nadarajah Raviraj was shot dead in Colombo in November 2006 along with his police bodyguard, in an incident that drew widespread local and international attention.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web sources confirm that Nadarajah Raviraj was shot dead in Colombo in November 2006. One source specifies the date as November 10, 2006, and mentions him being an MP and TNA member.
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web search NEUTRAL — Nadarajah Raviraj was a Sri Lankan lawyer and politician who served as Mayor of Jaffna in 2001 and a Member of Parliament for Jaffna District from 2001 to 2006. A member of the Tamil National Alliance…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadarajah_Raviraj
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web search NEUTRAL — “On November 10, 2006, Nadarajah Raviraj, a human rights lawyer and MP of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), was shot dead on a main road in Colombo by an assailant riding a motorbike.
https://www.dailymirror.lk/dbs-jeyaraj-column/Murder-most-fo…
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web search NEUTRAL — Sri Lankan Nadarajah Raviraj was murdered on his way to work in 2006, one of a serie.Sri Lankan MP Nadarajah Raviraj was ambushed after leaving his home in Colombo in November 2006 to drive to work. T…
https://www.ipu.org/news/features/human-rights-cases/2014-05…
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.