Sri Lanka Ports Authority v. Hon. Gamini Lokuge et al. – CA WRIT APPLICATION NO: 506/2010-2010

In the case between Sri Lanka Ports Authority and Hon. Gamini Lokuge, Hon. Athauda Seneviratne, W.J.L.U. Wijeweera, Liyod Galhena, H.A.S.A. De Silva, H.S. Fernando, and T.M.T. Hemachandra, the court addressed whether the reappointment of certain employees at a lower salary than their previous status violated a settlement order by the Labour Tribunal, and if such circumstances constituted an industrial dispute warranting arbitral referral. It was held that referring the dispute to arbitration by the Minister constituted a valid exercise of discretionary power, and that the arbitrator’s ruling upholding the validity of the referral was proper. This decision reaffirmed the principle that ministerial discretion in industrial disputes is not subject to judicial review absent patent illegality o