Ramani Karunanayake v. Girlie Wimalaratne – sllr 2001 volume 3 page 056

In the case between Girlie Wimalaratne (Appellant) and Ramani Karunanayake (Respondent), the court addressed whether the plaint disclosed a valid cause of action for the cancellation of Deeds of Gift and the grant of an undivided half share of the disputed premises, and whether such issue—entailing mixed legal and factual questions—could be decided as a preliminary matter under Section 147 of the Civil Procedure Code, without recourse to evidence. It was held that the District Court correctly exercised its discretion in determining that a preliminary legal issue could not be decided in the absence of evidentiary proceedings where questions of fact and law are intertwined. This holding reaffirmed the principle that preliminary issues must be pure questions of law, capable of being resolved