Gunawardane and Others vs. Muthukumarana and Others – sllr 2020 volume 3 page 306

In the case between Gunawardane and Others and Muthukumarana and Others, the court addressed whether the existence of a statutory right to appeal under Section 9 of the High Court of the Provinces (Special Provisions) Act No. 19 of 1990 necessarily excludes the revisionary jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal under Article 138 of the Constitution. It was held that revisionary and appellate jurisdictions are distinct, and the provision of an appellate right does not, by itself, remove the possibility of revisionary review. The principle reaffirmed is that revisionary jurisdiction may be exercised to correct manifest errors and prevent miscarriage of justice, even where a statutory right of appeal exists. The decision relied on constitutional provisions, statutory interpretation, and establis