Kalanasuriya Arachchige Henry Addarawatte vs. Kariyawasam Kankanthirige Devide Appuhamy and The Attorney General – CA DCF/926/97-2022

In the case between Kalanasuriya Arachchige Henry Addarawatte (later substituted by Kalanasuriya Arachchige Chandralatha) as Plaintiff and Kariyawasam Kankanthirige Devide Appuhamy (with substituted defendant-respondents 1A–1H) and the Attorney General (Added Defendant/Appellant), the court addressed the issue of whether the subject land (ASSALAGALA UDUMULLA; Lot-A in Plan No. 211B) was private property or State land. It was held that clear title was established by the Plaintiff, enabling the maintenance of a rei vindicatio action for declaration of title and ejectment against the defendants. The principle reaffirmed was that in such actions, upon proof of title by the Plaintiff, the onus shifts to the defendant to establish their legal basis for possession. The judgment relied on the eval