S.Gunasiri De Silva vs Thenuwara Badalge Swarnawathie – CA PHC 156/2012-2018

In the case between S. Gunasiri De Silva and Thenuwara Badalge Swarnawathie (and others), the court addressed the lawfulness of a High Court order refusing to issue notice in a revision application challenging a Magistrate’s Court decision that recognized a right of way across the appellant’s land and required removal of a fence obstructing it. It was held that adequate reasons existed for the High Court’s refusal, with such reasons duly entered in the court journal, and that the substantive rights of the parties were not prejudiced. The court reaffirmed that the determination of the convenience or replacement of a right of way falls within the jurisdiction of a competent civil court, not the Primary Court acting under section 69 of the Primary Courts Procedure Act. Reliance was placed on