Abeysinghe v. Abeysekera – sllr 1995 volume 2 page 104

The case between Abeysinghe (petitioner) and Abeysekera (respondent) addressed the issue of whether legal proceedings, judgment, and decrees made against a deceased defendant—especially concerning possession and statutory tenancy of premises subsequently demolished—are valid or grantable. It was held that such proceedings are a nullity where there is no living defendant (coram non judice) and, upon demolition of the premises, statutory tenancy cannot survive in respect of bare land. The principle reaffirmed is that tenancy rights are dependent on the continued existence of the subject premises, and that the court’s inherent jurisdiction under Section 839 of the Civil Procedure Code cannot be used to remedy an injustice where a building, the subject of tenancy, no longer exists. The decisio