Hafi v. Dayananda Dissanayake Commissioner of Elections and Other – sllr 2003 volume 3 page 081

The case between HAFI (petitioner) and Dayananda Dissanayake, Commissioner of Elections, along with other respondents, addressed whether non-compliance with Rule 14 of the Election Petition Rules—specifically, failure to serve the Notice of Presentation of the petition within ten days—invalidated the petition. It was determined that strict compliance with procedural requirements is mandatory, and failure to timely serve notice to all necessary parties, including service to the correct address, is a fatal defect. The principle reaffirmed the necessity of procedural regularity in election petitions under the Parliamentary Elections Act, No. 1 of 1981, and relevant case precedents. The petition was consequently dismissed with costs, establishing the impact that procedural omissions bear on th