Negombo doctor who raped a girl and killed her; sentenced to death

Death penalty for doctor who raped and killed garment worker! 
Dragged her on a piece of cardboard!
Doctor said "No .... no" even when Viagra pills and blood stains were found in his room!

The general public came to know of a sensational piece of news of a patient serving in a garment factory after having been admitted to Negombo Hospital had being raped by a young doctor while the said doctor fearing that the secret would leak out had then pushed her from a window.

The former resident Dr. Sudarshana Balage who was the accused in this instance of having raped and pushed the victim from a top storey on 12th November, 2007 was after a trial of 7 years sentenced to death by courts today. The victim was Chamila Dissanayaka (22), a resident of Dambagalla of Moneragala; an employee of a garment factory.

High Courts Judge Mr. H.H.A. Gafoor ordered a death penalty on the complaint of homicide and a further 15 years for the allegation of raping the victim concerned.

A female employee of the same hospital testified during court proceedings that the victim, the young girl who was supposed to have been killed after being made unconscious had been seen by her being laid on a thick piece of cardboard and being drawn along the corridor of the 6th floor of the said hospital.

A police officer who inspected the floor of the room in which Dr. Indika Sudarshan Balage (42) was after the incident happened, reported that he came across a strand of hair on the floor. He further said that on inspecting the interior of his room, he was able to find a card with only 2 Viagra pills left and that there were blood stains in the room and that it was suspicious that somebody had been pushed from the window.

But since Dr. Sudarshan Balage rejected all these allegations and the evidence given in courts on March 26th turned this case into a debatable issue, everyone's attention was drawn towards the outcome of the verdict to be given today.

"I didn't commit murder. Because of these allegations against me ... my whole life has been destroyed," he had said. "I live in Maradankadawela .... mother is a retired teacher and father a driver. I was successful in the Year 5 scholarship exam and entered Dharmaraja Vidyalaya. I obtained my MBBS Degree from Ragama Medical Faculty affiliated to the University of Kelaniya. I then worked as a resident doctor from 23-10-2006 at the Negombo Hospital. I was living with my wife on the 6th floor in Negombo Hospital. My wife worked as a Nurse in Ragama Hospital. Near my room was the room of the telephone operator also.

Around 8.20 in the morning, Dr. Indika came. At about 9.30 I went to the wash-room on the 6th floor .... my wife was in the room. She asked whether she could give me coffee. I refused. Again I went to
the clinic around 10.30 and helped Dr.Dhammika. On this occasion a medical student brought a girl called Sithara for a check-up to the clinic. I told them to get a red number. So saying I made a check on that patient. It seemed that she was suffering from a Hyperthyroid disorder. She was someone who had taken treatment for this condition and stopped. Again that problem had cropped up.  I made a note of this on her clinic book. I gave her instructions to wait outside until she is shown to the Consultant Doctor. After a short time when I looked around she was not to be seen. I went downstairs .... but she was no to be seen. I had a cup of coffee at the canteen and came back once more to the clinic. I was then told that the said girl had been sent to the Lady Consultant Doctor. I came to the room from the surgery and once more went to the surgery around 2.30 when I found that a lady who had a head injury was sent to Colombo.

I had a problem with my teeth. I went to consult a dental specialist. On 26th November, 2007 Dr. Dhammika had got a transfer to go to Polonnaruwa. I went to the town to give him a souvenir .... then came back to my room again.

The police were near my room. They said that a female had fallen and died. The police said that they wish to inspect my room. I questioned the medical authority Mr. Anton Tissera about this over the phone. He asked me to give my co-operation to police investigations. The police inspected the room. I was asked to come to the Hospital Police. There I was taken into custody over the death of this woman, on suspicion.

I couldn't believe anything. When everybody in the hospital were looking on, I was asked to get into the jeep. My wife came near the jeep and said, "You haven't made any blunder no .... so keep your mind calm". I was taken to the police and after tieing my hands and hanging me from my fingers I was beaten up, saying "Tell the truth or you'll be taken to the beach and shot dead!" I was questioned till 4.00 in the morning. At about 5.00 I was put in the cell. I have never killed anyone. I am being charged of an offence which I have not done. I am a doctor who saves the lives of people. Aney .... don't let my life be destroyed".

Whatever it is, Mrs. Beatrice attached to the cleaning section of Negombo Hospital explained the scene of how she was a witness of the accused Resident Dr. Sudarshan Balage keeping Chamila on a cardboard and dragging her along, in this manner: "I worked there for about 7 years. I worked in the Negombo General Hospital under the institution 'Wheel Shine' in Taladuwa area, Negombo which establishment provides cleaning labourers. It was when I was working there that this incident took place. November 12th is a day when I normally have work in the theater.

This theater was active from 7.00 in the morning till 5.00 in the evening. This theater was on the 7th floor in the new building in Negombo Hospital. When there's no work in the theater, there's a small place for me to stay in the corridor. I keep a chair and sit there. There's a parapet wall to the right side from where I sit. We are on the 7th floor, where the theater is. When we look down from that parapet wall, we can see all the corridors on the floors beneath.

The 6th floor below ours was where the quarters of the doctors and nurses were. That day also I finished my work in the morning and I was keeping the chair near the parapet wall in the corridor and was seated there. While I was like that there, I heard on the floor downstairs, that is on the 6th floor, as if somebody was being dragged along something along the corridor.

What I thought was that some of the staff members of our cleaning section had come and were cleaning the rooms of the doctors of that floor. Whatever it is, I got up and looked down from that parapet wall. It was when I was looking like that, that I saw that particular doctor dragging a cardboard along the corridor. A girl was on top of that cardboard resting with the face upwards. That girl had her eyes closed. I had seen that doctor before that. He's someone  who doesn't even talk with us. Other doctors of course talk with us. But this one is not someone who talks easily. Though we heard that this doctor is someone who is married, we have never seen who his wife was.

Then I suddenly thought whether it was this doctor's wife. Because of that I asked the doctor that time whether he wanted any help. It was at that time that he saw me. He said that he doesn't want any help.

When I came down the time was about 12.45. In a short time the people began to rush about shouting that a girl had fallen from the 6th floor. When I saw the dead Chamila's photo I remembered that it was this very girl whom the doctor was keeping on top of the cardboard and dragging along".

Police Inspector Mr. Kumara Thilak Subasingha had told courts that 2 pills of Viagra and a strand of hair was found towards the right side of the room. This is what he said: "I have worked for 30 years with Sri Lanka Police and 2 years in Negombo.

I was given an order by Negombo Headquarters Police Inspector that a woman had fallen from a top floor in Negombo Hospital on November 12th, 2007 and to conduct an investigation into it. According to the order I went to the hospital around 4.20 that evening. According to some information I received from an officer of the security division of the hospital, I inspected the section from where the patients entered. There was a blood stain of about 8 inches. I protected the place where the blood stain was found, with protection tapes. I also posted an officer at that site of the crime. The place where the blood stains at the spot where the woman had fallen was exactly in front of the passage which runs to the topmost floor of that top-storeyed building.

According to my investigations I felt that someone had fallen down unconscious or someone had died and then fallen down. According to my knowledge this can't be confirmed as a blood stain which occured as having jumped down If the person hadjumped down,the blood stain should have been at a different spot. After further investigations, it was revealed to me that this was not a case of jumping down. I went and searched Dr. Sudarshan Balage's room. The doctor opened the room and gave us.

I did this investigation to find whether someone had jumped from that window or whether someone can be pushed down from there. There was a wash-room there. There was a window in the wash-room and the window had two flaps.

Question -- Was there a possibility of someone putting out another from that room?

Answer-- Yes. Two beds were kept close to each other in the hospital. There was a steel cupboard. There were shoeware of ladies and gents there. A box in which a TV had been enclosed was flattened out. That cardboard had been flattened on the two sides and one side of that cardboard had been squeezed in such a manner that someone had squeezed it with fingers. On another side it was scratched and damaged. The cardboard was in a position that it could be dragged along the floor.

When another drawer was pulled out, there were some pills in a cupboard. There were pills in a card containing 4 pills and those were named as Viagra pills. In this investigation I was able to come across 2 strands of hair which can be called as that of a woman. Along the corridor on the 6th floor I found a hair-clip and 2 crele-clips.

According to evidence, it was concluded that this was a case of homicide.

42 year old Dr. Sudarshan Balage who was found guilty of raping and pushing Chamila Dissanayaka (22), a resident of Dambagalla area, Moneragala and an employee of the Free Trade Zone from a top-storeyed building and killing her on 12th November, 2007 was sentenced to death after a trial that lasted a period of 7 years.

Senior Lawyer Mr. Sri Lal Fernando together with Senior Lawyer Mr. Anura Premarathna and Mrs. Thanuja Hathurusingha appeared on behalf of the defence while President's Counsel Lawyer Prasanna Lal de Alwis and Lawyer Mr. Thushara Melewwethanthri appeared for the biased party.