Wijetunge v. Wickremanayake and Others – sllr 1981 volume 2 page 477

In WiJetunge v. Wickremanayake and Others, the court examined whether the vesting of an excess house under the Ceiling on Housing Property Law No. 1 of 1973 occurred automatically by operation of law (Section 11(1)) or through a discretionary act by the Commissioner of National Housing. It was determined that vesting took place automatically upon satisfaction of statutory requirements, and consequently, the Board of Review lacked jurisdiction to entertain an appeal against such vesting under Section 39. The orders of the Board of Review and the Commissioner cancelling the vesting were quashed. This outcome reaffirmed the principle that where the statute mandates automatic vesting, any subsequent challenge is precluded, ensuring finality as provided by Section 15(2). Costs were awarded to t