M B Susil Kumara vs Urban Development Authority of Sri Lanka – CA PHC/172/2003-2017

In the case between M B Susil Kumara (Petitioner-Appellant) and Urban Development Authority of Sri Lanka (Respondent-Respondent), the court addressed whether the Urban Development Authority (UDA) possessed legal authority under the Urban Development Authority Act to obtain a court order for the demolition of an allegedly unlawful construction by the Appellant, and whether the proceedings and judgments of the lower courts were legally sustainable. The appeal challenged the UDA’s authority due to the alleged absence of a requisite Gazette notification and raised questions as to the Provincial High Court’s jurisdiction over matters involving state land. It was determined that Section 28A(3) of the UDA Act expressly empowers the UDA to institute such proceedings, and procedural confusion in th