Dayawathi vs Edirisinghe and 4 Others – sllr 2012 volume 2 page 124

Brief
In DAYAWATHI v. EDIRISINGHE AND 4 OTHERS, the Supreme Court addressed the legality of procedures followed in the recovery of Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) contributions, specifically whether actions taken under Section 38(2) of the EPF Act were proper when the prescribed process under Sections 17 and 38(1) had not been utilized. The Court held that the petitioner’s arrest and detention, arising from the erroneous filing of a certificate by the 3rd Respondent based on mistaken identity and improper statutory procedure, violated the petitioner’s fundamental rights under Article 12(1) of the Constitution. The Court reaffirmed that statutory procedures for recovery must be strictly followed, especially when such actions have the potential to affect individual liberty. The decision was