Appapillai Amirthalingam v. Piyasekera, M. A. Commissioner of Elections and Another – sllr 1980 volume 2 page 285

In Appapillai Amirthalingam v. M. A. Priyasekera, Commissioner of Elections, and another, the court addressed whether the Commissioner of Elections acted within statutory duty under Article 161(d) of the Constitution regarding the nomination process for a replacement Member of Parliament following the death of an incumbent. The petition challenged the Commissioner’s handling of the party nomination and sought writs of certiorari and mandamus to compel action. It was established that certiorari cannot be issued in the absence of a formal and concluded decision by the Commissioner and that mandamus, as an extraordinary writ, is unavailable when alternative remedies exist, such as contesting any eventual nomination. The application was refused, affirming the principle that judicial review req