Vanderkoon vs. Suriyabandara et al. – CA WRIT/210/2022-2023

In the case between Sriyangani Sandhya Vanderkoon and a group of governmental authorities including the Director-General of Wildlife Conservation and the Director General of Forest, Department of Forest Conservation, the court addressed the legality of decisions refusing permission for the petitioner to construct a dwelling on private land. It was held that the refusal, as evidenced in documents ‘P27’ and ‘P38’, was issued without adherence to the procedural requirements established under section 9A of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance. The principle reaffirmed that administrative decisions affecting proprietary rights must comply strictly with procedural safeguards involving environmental assessments and statutory due process. Reliance was placed on the statutory framework of the F