Hettiarachchi v. Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka and Others – sllr 2000 volume 3 page 334

In the case between Hettiarachchi (petitioner) and Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka and Others (respondents), the court addressed the alleged infringement of the petitioner’s fundamental right under Article 12(1) arising from the imposition of disciplinary measures without proper procedure and the refusal to permit the use of public property for political activities. It was held that the disciplinary orders against the petitioner were not based on genuine misconduct but were improperly motivated by political considerations, and that fundamental rights were violated due to failure to observe due process. The principle reaffirmed is that public authorities must exercise disciplinary powers with strict adherence to procedural fairness and must not permit misuse of public resources for politica