COLOMBO, 25 March, 2021 (TON): On Wednesday, the Justice Minister Ali Sabry presented the Code of Criminal Procedure Amendment Bill.

The bill presented would make provisions that those punished under the convention against Torture and other Cruel inhuman or Degrading Treatment or the Punishment Act No 22 of 1994 will be ensured protection in custody.  

It will be the duty of every Magistrate to visit every police station situated within the judicial division in respect of which he is appointed.

The Magistrate will visit at least once in every month to ensure that the suspects under police custody at such police stations are protected to the extent provided for in the Convention against Torture and other cruel, inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment Act No 22 of 1994.

Moreover, the Magistrate who visits the police station shall personally see the suspect and look into his well-being, welfare and conditions under which he is kept at such police station and then record his observations and complaints the suspect may make.

However, where the Magistrate is of the opinion that the suspect may have been subjected to torture, he may direct that the suspect be produced before a Judicial Medical Officer for a medical examination and the report be submitted by the medical officer to him as per the Bill and then the Magistrate can order treatment if the suspect is subjected to torture and can also change the custody of the suspect.