Mahawalla Vithanawasam Rahula Kudahil Aramba v. OIC Police Station, Ahangama – CA PHC APN: 110/2012-2017

The case between Mahawalla Vithanawasam Rahula (owner of truck SPLA 1425) and Officer-in-Charge, Police Station, Ahangama, and others, addressed the validity of confiscating a vehicle under the Forest Ordinance, particularly considering the appellant’s claimed lack of knowledge or precaution regarding the vehicle’s use for transporting illicit timber. It was held that the confiscation was valid, reaffirming the principle that the registered owner bears the burden to establish, on a balance of probabilities, both the absence of knowledge and the exercise of all reasonable precautions against misuse. Reliance was placed on precedents interpreting the Forest Ordinance, with emphasis on the criteria required for vehicle owners to avoid confiscation where a vehicle has been implicated in enviro