Gajasinghe Janak Prasad De Silva and others Vs. L.P. Harischandra and others – CA PHC 122/2010-2014

In the case between Gajasinghe Janak Prasad De Silva and Preethika De Silva (Petitioner-Appellants) and L.P. Harischandra (Plaintiff-Respondent), the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka addressed whether the Provincial High Court possesses jurisdiction to issue a writ of certiorari against orders by the Assistant Commissioner of Agricultural Development under the Agrarian Development Act. It was held that the earlier legal precedent in *M. P. Wijesooriya v. Nimalawathie Wanigasingha*—which excludes High Court jurisdiction over certain island-wide officers—was misapplied; instead, the impugned order had been made at the provincial level, not with island-wide authority. The appellate court determined that the High Court did have jurisdiction, setting aside the lower court’s dismissal and ordering the