Weerakoon Mudiyanselage Prasanna Saminda Bandara Weerakoon vs. P.D.A Swarnalatha and others – CA WRIT 131/2012-2012

In the case between Weerakoon Mudiyanselage Prasanna Saminda Bandara Weerakoon (Petitioner) and P.D.A Swarnalatha, Deputy Commissioner Officer of Agrarian Development, Kurunegala (Respondent), among others, the court considered the propriety of issuing an interim order permitting the 5th respondent to continue cultivating disputed agricultural land pending resolution of the propriety of the land’s sale. The determination emphasized that issuance of such an interim order was unwarranted during the pendency of an official inquiry into the legitimacy of the transfer and cultivation rights. The findings reaffirmed the principle that interim relief is not justified where substantive rights are unresolved and statutory inquiries are pending. Reliance was placed on the statutory framework governi