Piyasena v. Associated Newspapers Of Ceylon Ltd. And Others – sllr 2006 volume 3 page 113

In Piyasena v. Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd. and others, the Supreme Court addressed the issue of whether the promotion practices of ANCL violated the petitioner’s fundamental rights under Article 12(1) of the Constitution and if ANCL, as a statutory corporation subject to State control, constituted “executive or administrative action” amenable to fundamental rights jurisdiction. The court held that ANCL, given its statutory status, government shareholding, and oversight, functions as an instrumentality or agency of the State, thereby falling within the jurisdiction contemplated under Article 126. The ruling further established that the petitioner’s compliance with Rule 44(1)(c) was adequate and any additional documentation could be submitted by leave of court. Preliminary objection