Malinie Gunaratne, Additional District Judge, Galle v. Abeysinghe and Another – sllr 1994 volume 3 page 196

In the case between Malinie Gunaratne, Additional District Judge, Galle (Plaintiff), and Abeysinghe and another (Defendants), the court addressed the validity of issuing summons in a private plaint under section 139(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure and the status of a Magistrate as a public servant under sections 19 and 215 of the Penal Code. The court held that the issuance of summons must strictly adhere to the “sufficient ground” requirement, based solely on objectively verifiable evidence rather than extraneous considerations. The allegation of an “incorrect entry” regarding a rubber stamp on the judicial record was not substantiated upon scrutiny of the handwritten journal entries. The order directing the issuance of summons was set aside, reaffirming the principle that judicial a