Pathirage Ann Rani Perera v. Forest Officer and Hon. Attorney General – CA PHC APN NO: 42/2014-2016

In the case between Pathirage Ann Rani Perera (petitioner/vehicle owner) and the Range Forest Officer, Puttalam and the Hon. Attorney General (respondents), the court addressed whether the confiscation of the petitioner’s lorry, used to transport timber without a permit, was lawful and whether exceptional circumstances existed to invoke revisionary jurisdiction. The holding confirmed that the petitioner failed to establish that all reasonable precautions had been taken to prevent the offense as required by the Forest Ordinance, and no exceptional circumstances warranted appellate intervention. The decision relied on statutory interpretation of the Forest Ordinance and the authority of Dharmaratne v. Palm Paradise Cabanas Ltd., reaffirming that revisionary relief is discretionary and requir