R.D.Selesthina and others Vs. Leelaratna llesingha – CA 1010/96 F-1996

In the case between Leelaratna lIesingha (Plaintiff-Respondent) and R.D. Selesthina and N. Karunawathie (Defendant-Appellants), the court addressed the timeliness of the filing of the petition of appeal by the appellants. The core issue was whether the appeal petition had been filed within the period required by law and if the preliminary objection to the appeal’s maintainability, based on alleged late submission, should be sustained. It was determined that the petition of appeal was properly tendered, and the necessary stamp duty had been paid on the due date. The lack of a day stamp was found to be attributable to an administrative oversight, not to any fault of the appellants, and did not justify rejection of the appeal. The holding reaffirmed the principle that procedural errors by cou