Pahalayaya Nandasena vs Karunanayaka Hitiralalage Ananda Bandara et al. – SC APPEAL 141/09-2016

In the case between Pahalayaya Nandasena (and associated appellants) and Karunanayaka Hitiralalage Ananda Bandara, Sunethra Kumari, and others, the court addressed the issue of whether a deed purporting to convey an undivided share of a larger tract of land may be interpreted as conveying a specifically divided lot, and whether prescriptive title could be claimed over such divided portions. It was held that when land is conveyed through a deed in clear and unambiguous terms expressing an undivided share, the instrument must be interpreted according to its plain language. Reliance on prescriptive title for a divided lot in the face of an undivided conveyance was found untenable, affirming that courts cannot alter the operative language of a deed under the guise of effecting intention. The d