Senanayake vs Commissioner of National Housing and Others – sllr 2005 volume 1 page 182

In the case between Senanayake (Petitioner) and the Commissioner of National Housing and Others (Respondents), the court addressed whether strict or absolute compliance with affidavit filing rules is mandated or if substantial compliance, evaluated in light of the object and purpose of the rules, is acceptable. The court determined that procedural rules governing affidavits should not be applied inflexibly; instead, substantial compliance will suffice where non-compliance occurs through no fault of the party. It was established that an affidavit affirmed before a Justice of the Peace outside the correct territorial jurisdiction does not ipso facto invalidate proceedings. The decision relied on precedents such as Ceylon Workers Congress v. S. Sathasivam, Pakir Mohideen v. Mohamadu Cassim, J