Vipul Manoj Bollagala vs Hon. Mangala Samaraweera Minister of Finance and others – 0491/2019-2022

In Vipul Manoj Bollagala v. Hon. Mangala Samaraweera and others, the court addressed the issue of whether the petitioner’s rights were violated in relation to the registration and subsequent forfeiture of a vehicle assembled from imported parts, and whether relief by way of writs of certiorari and mandamus could be granted. The court held that failure to directly challenge the Customs forfeiture order rendered the request to quash the Minister’s rejection of the appeal ineffective, and emphasized that no legal instrument had given effect to the relevant budget speech proposal, precluding the issuance of mandamus to compel vehicle release. It was affirmed that reliance solely on a budget speech, absent legislative or regulatory enactment, cannot confer enforceable rights of administrative r