Pethiyagoda John Ranasinghe Arachchige Sudantha Sagara Ranasinghe and others vs. A.S.M. Jayasingha and others – CA WRIT/73/2023-2023

The case between the judicial officers’ associations, including the High Court Judges’ Association and District Judges/Magistrates’ Association, and officials from the Ministry of Justice and the Department of Inland Revenue, addressed the legality of deducting Advance Personal Income Tax (APIT) from the remuneration of judicial officers. The core issue concerned whether such deductions are consistent with constitutional guarantees of judicial independence and the separation of powers, particularly questioning the categorization of judicial officers as “employees” for tax purposes. The court’s determination reaffirmed that judicial independence requires particular protection of judicial remuneration, and actions diminishing such remuneration through statutory tax measures warrant careful c