Murugesu Thayabaran Vs. Chulananda Perera And others – CA WRIT APPLICATION NO.215/17-2018

In the case between Murugesu Thayabaran (petitioner) and Chulananda Perera (Director General of Customs) and others (respondents), the court addressed whether an amended petition, expanding or altering the nature of the relief sought in a writ application under Article 140 of the Constitution, may be filed without prior court permission. The court held that such an amendment—when made without the requisite leave and where it fundamentally transforms the scope and character of the original application—should not be permitted. Relying on procedural requirements and the principle that amendments cannot circumvent the regular course of justice, it was emphasized that amendments of substance which shift the legal framework of a case require strict judicial scrutiny and permission. The applicati